THE LIFE 



OF 



SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL, Bart., 



THE ONLY NATIVE OF NEW ENGLAND WHO WAS CREATED A BARONET 
e 
DURING OUR CONNECTION WITH THE MOTHER COUNTRY. 



BY 



USHER PARSONS 



BOSTON : 

LITTLE, BROWN AND COMPANY. 

1855. 



f 






Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1855, by 

LITTLE, BROWN AND COMPANY, 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts. 



CAMBRIDGE: 
ALLEN AND FAKNHAM, PRINTERS. 



TO THE 

HON. LORENZO SABINE, 

"WHOSE FAITHFUL SKETCHES OF THE 

LIVES OF "AMERICAN LOYALISTS," 

AlS^D OTHER VALUABLE PUBLICATIONS, 
ENTITLE HIM TO THE GRATITUDE OF THE PUBLIC, 

THIS VOLUME 

IS RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBE I) 
BY 

THE AUTHOR. 



PREFACE. 



The author, two or three years ago, received from a friend 
in New York, a paekaore of papers, which he was desired to use 
as materials for a Life of Sir William Pepperrell, the renowned 
" Hero of Louisburg." These papers had been exposed in an 
old shed on the Pepperrell estate, probably for half a century,, 
and were much stained and defaced. Indeed a part of them 
had become almost illegible, while others, on examination, 
proved to be of little value, being, in fact, mere business 
receipts, bills of lading, accounts, and memorandums. They 
were saved from total destruction by Colonel George Spar- 
hawk, who, allied by marriage to descendants of Sir William, 
and living near the Pepperrell mansion, arranged them accord- 
ing to their dates, in a sequence of years from 1696 to 1759. 

Among the few of any value to a biographer were rough 
draughts of letters to correspondents, and original letters from 
the same. But even these were in a measure unintelligible 
without their correlatives, which some light-fingered antiquary 
had purloined. vSome of the missing documents were, however, 
recovered by diligent search subsequently, greatly to the satis- 
faction of the author, as allowing him to relate incidents in the 
baronet's career, which would otherwise have been omitted. 

A* 



VI PREFACE. 

But yet the materials, when collected from every source, were 
so scanty, as almost to lead to a determination to abandon the 
undertaking. In truth, I persevered only at the earnest solici- 
tations of friends, who convinced me that the duty ought to be 
performed by some one, that every year of delay would increase 
the difficulties and perplexities which discouraged me, and that, 
while I might fail to write an interesting biography, I should at 
least rescue from oblivion many valuable facts for an abler pen 
at some future period. 

It is to be remembered, that Sir William's avocations for the 
ten years preceding his memorable expedition to Louisburg, 
afford few events worthy of notice. He was one of the prin- 
cipal merchants of the day, and his time was engrossed by the 
building of vessels, the planning of voyages to Europe and the 
islands in the Caribbean Sea, the erection and operation of 
mills, and the purchase and sale of domestic and foreign pro- 
ductions. Meagre as are the records of his business, enough 
has been preserved to show that, as a man of trade, he was skil- 
ful beyond most, and that his success was not the result of what 
is commonly called "luck," but of untiring industry, nice calcu- 
lation, and ability. 

Such of the baronet's papers as illustrate the annals of his 
country, were consulted and relied on as the best possible 
authority by the Rev. Dr. Belknap, in writing his History of New 
Hampshire, and were deposited by him in the archives of the 
Massachusetts Historical Society, where they still remain. The 
accuracy of Belknap's concise and elegant work, so far as relates 
to the siege of the " Dunkirk of America,'^ is attributable to the 
materials thus obtained. As the professed historian of a single 
colony, he was particular to present to his readers all that 
seemed worthy of record touching the perils and services of its 



PREFACE. Vll 

people, rather than a detailed account of the whole enterprise ; 
hence the prominence given by him to the troops of New Hamp- 
shire. It is for the biographer of the Commander of the Expe- 
dition to supply omissions, and to state that his native " district," 
— or as Maine was then called, the "county of York," — fur- 
nished more soldiers in proportion to its population than any 
other section of New England, namely, upwards of one thou- 
sand, or nearly one third of the whole land force employed. 
And this, be it remembered, when the enrolled militia of Maine 
consisted of two regiments only. 

Brief sketches of the siege and reduction of Louisburg are 
contained in the history of each New England province and of 
Nova Scotia, and in the more general histories of the times in 
both England and America. It was the greatest warlike enter- 
prise in colonial history, and the crowning event in Pepperrell's 
life ; and his biographer is therefore bound to give, what has not 
hitherto been done, a detailed account of it from the most 
authentic sources, even at the risk of seeming prohxity. This 
he has attempted not by inferences from other historians, or by 
a web of his own weaving, but by spreading before the reader 
the authentic documents, written at the time and on the spot by 
Sir William and other chief actors in the scene, to estimate and 
decide upon their character and import for himself. 

I designed to prepare an original plan of Louisburg, but after 
a personal inspection of the ruins of that city, and after an ex- 
amination of several drawings of it and its fortresses, I became 
satisfied that the print which appeared in the early editions of 
the History of the Colonization of the United States admitted 
of no improvements ; and accordingly, by the kind permission 
of Mr. Bancroft, used his i)late instead of a new one. 

My thanks are due to John Blunt, Esq., of New York ; 



viii PKEFACE. 

Dr. C. W. Parsons, of Providence ; J. Wingate Thornton, Esq., 
of Boston ; Colonel George Sparhawk, of Kittery ; George 
A. Ward, Esq., of Curwen's Journal; and to Hon. Lorenzo 
Sabine, author of the American Loyalists, for aid and sugges- 
tions, which have materially assisted me iu the performance of 
my labors. 

PUOVIDENCE, R. L, 
May, 1855. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 



William Pepperrell, senior, Father of the Baronet. — Emigrates to the Isle of 
Shoals. — Marries Miss Bray, and settles at Kittery Point. — Pascataqua 
River. — Its Settlements and Early Trade. — Shipbuilding. — Indian Wars. 

— Education of Children. — Purchase of Saco lands. — Appointed Judge 
and Colonel. — His Death. — Death and Obituary of Mrs. Pepperrell 

page 1-19 

CHAPTER n. 

Birth of Sir William Pepperrell, junior, (the Baronet). — Limited Education 
and Early Employment in Trade. — Indian Cruelties. — Nature of Trade. — 
Rises in Military Stations. — Chosen Representative and Councillor. — ^lar- 
ries. — Appointed Chief Justice. — Never imported Slaves. — Family Tomb. 

— Will of his Fathei*. — Improves Military Disciphne. — Benning Went- 
worth appointed Governor. — Children of Pepperrell. — Marriage of his 
Daughter 20-40 

CHAPTER HI. 

Siege of Louisburg. — War with France. — Louisburg, its Situation in connec- 
tion with the Canadas. — Its Strength. — Its Commander seizes Canseau. — 
Expedition against it projected and prepared. — Pepperrell appointed to 
Command. — Rapid Enlistment. — Shirley's absurd Instructions . 41-5& 

CHAPTER IV. 

Troops embark and arrive at Canseau. — Warren arrives there with Ships. — 
Landing of the Army at Cabai'us Bay. — Vaughn marches with four hun- 
dred Men and burns the Public Stores. — Grand Battery deserted. — Fas- 
cine Batteries erected, and Cannon drawn over a Morass. — Flag sent in to 
demand a Surrender. — Cannon found at Light-house. — Vigilant taken. — 
Island Battery Attack and repulse. — Plan of Attack on the City agreed on. 

— Letter sent in from Marquis de la Maison Forte. — Order and Signals 



X TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

for storming the City. — Capitulation offered, agreed on, and signed. — 
Fepperrell marched into the City at tlie head of his Troops. — Official Re- 
ports of the Siege. — Public Rejoicings in Boston and other Cities. — Com- 
pliments from the King and Board of Admiralty. — Fepperrell made a 
Baronet, Warren an Admiral, and Shirley a Colonel. — Dr. Chauncy's 
Letter • 57-110 



CHAPTER V. 

Heavy rains set in after the Siege. — Letters of Drs. Chauncy and Flint. — 
Shirley requested to visit Louisburg. — On his return he compliments the 
Arxny to the Legislature. — Several rich Prizes taken. — Copy of a joint 
Letter to the Duke of Newcastle, giving Official Account of the Surrender 

111-128 

CHAPTER VI. 

Ryan appointed Lieutenant-Colonel. — Bradstreet, Lieutenant-Governor of 
Newfoundland. — ' Captain Piercy tried for Treason. — Lady Warren arrived. 
— Letter to Governor Wolcott. — Sickness. — Rhode Island Services. — 
Warren's Farewell to the Arm}'. — Complimentary Address from Massa- 
chusetts, and Pepperrell's Reply. — Warren and Fepperrell arrive in Bos- 
ton; grand Reception. — Welcome of Speaker to Warren and Fepperrell, 
and their Replies. --Warren leaves for England. — Pepperrell's triumphant 
March to Portsmouth. — Concluding Remarks .... 129-145 



CHAPTER VH. 

French Forces sent under Duke D' Anville to destroy Sea-ports. — Great Prep- 
arations for Defence. — Dispersion and Loss of Fleet. — Projected Expedi- 
tion against Canada, abandoned. — Bradstreet proposes to purchase Pep- 
perrell's Commission. — Letter to Governor Wolcott about Recruits. — Ryan 
is detected in selling Commissions. — Is tried and cashiered. — Letter to 
Rev. Stephen Williams. — To Governor Wentworth about building a Frig- 
ate. — Prepares for second Visit to Louisburg. — Anson and Warren cap- 
ture French Fleet. — Letter to Warren, and Recommendation of his Nephew 

146-170 

CHAPTER VIH. 

Leaves Louisburg with Knowles for Boston, and encounters Tempest. — 
Tumult created by Impressment. — Letter from Waldo. — From three Sub- 
alterns, and Reply. — From five Subalterns. — Secretary of War's Construc- 
tion. — Knowles's two Letters. — Letter to Governor Hopson. — Suits 
against Ryan, who escapes. — Mrs. Frost's Marriage to Dr. Colmau 

171-191 



TABLE OF CONTEXTS. XI 



CHAPTER IX. 

Andrew Pepperrell is engaged to Jkliss Waldo. — Correspondence of their 
Fathers and of Isaac Winslow. — Letter to Warren, and Answer. — Letter 
to Governor Hopson. — Forwards Bearing's Petition for Reprieve. — Shir- 
ley's Reply. — From Sir Peter Warren about Reimbursements, and the 
Amount. — Regiment is disbanded 192-209 



CHAPTER X. 

Sir William sails for London. — Sparhawk's Letters. — fleets Warren and 
Waldo. — Division of Parish in Kitter}'. — Stephen Minot's Letter to An- 
drew about Miss Waldo. — William Tyler's comical Letter. — Sir William 
returns to America. — Horses brought. — Writes to Willard and Warren. — 
Proposed Wedding of Andrew, and his Dismission . . . 210-229 

CHAPTER XL 

Letter to Richard Waldron; non-committal. — Style of Living. — Andrew's 
Death. — Letter to Boston IMinisters. — Andrew's Obituary. — Letter to 
Warren, and his Reply; to Kilby; Colonel Gorham; Secretary Willard; 
Henry Flint; to Governor Wentworth; Lady Warren. — Rev. Jonathan 
Edwards's Visit. — His Letter to Lady Pepperrell. — History of the Stock- 
bridge Mission. — Edwards removed to Princeton College. — Willard's Let- 
ter; Replay. — Letter to Colonel Israel Williams .... 230-256 

CHAPTER XH. 

Sir William's Appearance and Dress. — Saco Bridge built. — Indian Council 
and Treaty. — Fort built at Duquesne, and Collision with Virginia. — 
Washington sent with Protest. — Letter to Secretary Willard from Governor 
Shirley, and Reply. — Indian Hostilities in Maine . . . 257-269 

CHAPTER Xm. 

Hostilities commenced. — Governor orders an Inspection of the Militia; Pep- 
perrelPs Report. — Sir Thomas Robinson's Letter. — Lord Halifax's Letter. 
— Sir William's Reply, and to Colcraft. — To Governor Belcher and to 
Lord Halifax. — Braddock's Defeat and Death. — Johnson and Lyman's 
Victory over Dieskau. — Pepperrell ordered to New York. — Expedition 
against Niagara and Frontinac ; Detention of Mercer and the Army at Os- 
wego. — French Neutrals removed by Winslow, and their Dispersion. — 
Pepperrell promoted to a ^Major-General. — Sparhawk's Letters to him. — 
Letter to Lord Halifox. — Campaign of 1756. — Loudon, Commander-in- 
Chief. — Offered the Command of Crown Point. — Loss of Oswe;ro. — Cool- 



Xll TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

ness between Pepperrell and Shirley. — Shirley ordered Home. — Letter to 
Belcher, and Contribution to New Jersey College. — Commands Castle 
William. — Governor Pownall arrives. — Ke5's of Castle William presented. 
— Fruitless Expedition against Louisburg by Loudon. — Montcalm re- 
duces Fort William Henry. — Great Alarm in New England. — Pepperrell 
marches to Springfield; his Letters and Eeturn. — Abercrombie. — Heavy 
Taxes. — Pitt appointed Mmister of War 270-309 

CHAPTER XV. 

Campaign of 1758. — Second Reduction of Louisburg. — Repulse of Aber- 
crombie. — Bradstreet's Victory at Frontinac. — Forbes and Washington 
took possession of Pittsburgh. — Pepperrell promoted to Lieutenant-Gen- 
eral. — Health fails. — Expeditions for 1759. — Capture and Defence of 
Fort Niagara. — Quebec taken. — Death of Pepperrell; his Character and 
his Benefactions 310-325 

CHAPTER XVL 

Revolutionary War. — Sir AVilliam's Legacies. — Estates lost by Confiscation. 
Present State of Cape Breton and Louisburg. — Descendants of Sir William 
in America and in England 326-341 



APPENDIX. 

A. Abstract of Pepperrell' s Will 343 

B. List of Army Officers at Louisburg 347 

C. Brief Notices of some Oflicers at Louisburg 349 



ERRATA 



Page 1, line second, and page 209, line first, for Wales read Devon. 
15, line fourteenth, for 1747 read 1750. 
102, line fifth from bottom, for Massachusetts Historical Society, read State House 

Library. 
192, line tenth from top, for Nathaniel read John Sparhawk. 



LIFE 



OF 



SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



CHAPTER I. 

PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 

The father of Sir William Pepperrell was a native of 
Ravistock Parish, near Plymouth, in Wales. At the 
age of twenty-two he emigrated to the Isle of Shoals, 
and after a residence there of four or five years he 
removed to Kittery Point, where he resided the remain- 
der of his days, which terminated in 1734. 

It is interesting and instructive to trace the rising 
steps of the Pepperrell family, from a destitute young 
fisherman to the princely affluence and exalted stations, 
civil, political, and military, to which the son arrived. 
It sheds light upon the history of the infant colonies, 
the character of the early settlers, the nature of their 
occupations, their commerce, the condition and relative 
importance of places of trade, and the influence of the 
times and events, in forming the character and shaping 
the fortunes of the illustrious subject of this memoir. 

1 



2 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

The name once so celebrated, has in America long since 
become extinct, and but for its record in the page of 
history, would ere this have passed into oblivion. To 
account for this curious fact, it will be necessary to 
give a more extended notice of the history of the family 
than would otherwise seem necessary. The name is 
variously spelt, not only by historians, and by cor- 
respondents who had occasion to address them, but 
even by themselves. It is sometimes spelt Pepperel, 
Pepperrel, Pepperrell, and Peprel ; but in official papers, 
and in the Herald office, it is spelt Pepperrell.* 

The elder William Pepperrell was apprenticed, when 
a boy, to the captain of a fishing schooner employed on 
the coast of New England, and on the banks of New- 
foundland, and having finished his term of service he 
earned a small sum, and embarked with it for the Isle 
of Shoals, near which he had formerly been employed 
in fishing. His education was very limited, his letters 
from bad writing and worse spelling being hardly legi- 
ble. Tradition says that he spoke the broad Welsh, as 
Boll and Woll for Bill and Will. 

His parents died early, leaving him and two or three 
sisters in destitute condition. One of the sisters, an 
invalid named Grace, lived to advanced age, unmarried. 
Being an invalid as well as destitute, she received 
assistance from the parish, and was buried at its ex- 
pense. Another sister married a Phillips and had 
several children, three of whom visited their uncle 
William and were employed in his service as com- 



* " William Pepperrells bear for their arms, argent a cheveron 
gules between three pine-apples, slipt verte. N. B. No crest is to be 
found to the above-mentioned arms, being an ancient coat before vests 
"were used." — Herald Office. 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 6 

manders of small coasting vessels ; — two of them 
settled in Saco and are mentioned in the wills of both 
the William Pepperrells, who left them small legacies. 
Another sister married a Gilbert, and had children, 
among wiiom was a daughter named Mary, who mar- 
ried a Nichols. This Mary shared more of her uncle's 
affections than any other relative left in his native land. 
She wrote often and apprised him of the condition and 
changes of his kindred and acquaintances ; and it is 
from the letters which passed between them that the 
few facts relating to the early Pepperrell history have 
been gleaned. 

At the Isle of Shoals the elder Pepperrell united in 
partnership with a Mr. Gibbons, of Topsham, England.* 
They invested their little stock of cash in fishing-boats 
and equipments, and let them to others on shares, and 



* The Isles of Shoals lie nine miles southerly from Kittery Point. 
They were visited by Captain Smith in 1614, and for many years 
went by the name of Smith's Isles. Their whole number of acres is 
about six hundred, and the population varied, in the last two cen- 
turies, from two to six hundred persons. In early times they consti- 
tuted one township, called Appledore, and sent two representatives 
to the General Court of Massachusetts, when a like number was sent 
from Kittery, York, and Wells. A portion of the islands now be- 
longs to New Hampshire, and the rest to Maine. They afford a safe 
harbor to small vessels in stress of weather. The inhabitants were 
formerly more engaged in fishery than at present, and had many 
stagings and flakes for drying. It is here that the dun-Jish, so much 
valued by epicures, and which bring three times the price of common 
cod-fish, are obtained. They are said to be thicker than the common 
cod, and are caught and cured in the winter season, and named dun 
from their color. The character of the original islanders for sound 
morals, industry, and intelligence, has acquired for them great respect 
in the estimation of posterity. They supported an able ministry at 
the time of Mr. Pepperrell's residence there. 



4 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

attended themselves to the curing of fish, on Star 
Island, and to the sale of them to merchants for 
Southern and European markets. They met with 
good success during three or four years, when Gibbons 
removed to the eastward, and purchased a right in 
the Muscongus or Waldo patent, including the present 
county of Waldo. 

While upon the islands, Pepperrell had frequent 
occasion to sail to Kittery Point, for the purpose of 
traffic, and for the purchase and repair of boats. A 
shipwright there, named John Bray, supplied his wants, 
and in the course of their dealings welcomed him to 
the hospitalities of his house. Mr. Bray had arrived at 
the Pascataqua, from Plymouth, England, about 1660, 
bringing with him his family, among whom was a child 
named Margery, then only a year old. He purchased 
land at the Point, where the ancient Pepperrell mansion 
now stands, and was engaged in ship and boatbuild- 
ing during a long life. Margery had arrived at the age 
of seventeen when she first saw Mr. Pepperrell, who, 
smitten with her youthful charms, was not slow in 
making his impressions known. He probably expected 
to drive a bargain for her, with her father, with the 
same facility that he had often done for a boat. But 
her tender years were offered as an objection to the 
match, though it was conjectured that lack of the need- 
ful on his part had some influence. Time, however, 
served to lessen both objections ; she grew older, and he, 
by the first vessel he was able to send abroad, added 
much to his property; consequently, having passed 
through her teens, she obtained her father's willing con- 
sent to the alliance. 

About the time of their marriage, Mr. Pepperrell 
changed his residence from the Shoals to Kittery Point, 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. O 

where Mr. Bray gave him the site of the present Pep- 
perrell mansion. The south part of this structure was 
built by the elder Pepperrell, and the north part by Sir 
William. It has recently been curtailed in its dimen- 
sions, by the removal of ten feet from each end of the 
building. Here was the birthplace of Sir William, 
and here dwelt "the two families, till the father's decease 
in 1734, which left the son's family sole occupants till 
1759. It was in this period, of little more than half a 
century, that the largest fortune, then known in New 
England, was gradually accumulated. It was, however, 
increased by a legacy left to Mr. Pepperrell by his 
father-in-law, beside an estate in Plymouth, which also 
descended from Mr. Bray to Mrs. Pepperrell, and from 
her to her son (Sir) William. 

The Pascataqua, which enters the ocean at Kittery 
Point, extends northerly, forty miles, to Wakefield, and 
is the boundary between Maine and New Hampshire. 
The territory on the east side of the river, from the 
Point to Lebanon, was called Pascataqua, and was 
changed to Kittery, which then included the present 
towns of Kittery and Elliot, and the Berwicks. Ber- 
wick was separately incorporated in 1723, and Elliot in 
1810. There were local names given to districts along 
the shore, prior to any act of incorporation, as Kittery 
Point or Champernoon ; Sturgeon Creek, some eight or 
ten miles north ; and Newicheivannock at the head of 
tide-water in South Berwick, including Great-ivorks 
Falls. Above this was Quampegan, then Salmon Falls, 
and Toiv-ivoiv, or Lebanon. Opposite to Kittery Point, 
and near the New Hampshire shore, is Newcastle, an 
island, which, during the first century after the settle- 
ment, was the principal seat of commerce, especially of 
New Hampshire, and was fortified at an early period. 



6 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Two miles north of it was Strawberry Bank, now 
Portsmouth, which, as the savages disappeared and the 
country was settled, became a more convenient place 
of trade, and gradually absorbed most of that which 
had belonged to Newcastle. Near the south-west line 
of Portsmouth, a cove makes in and forms Little 
Harbor^ where the first emigrants pitched their tents 
and commenced fishing. 

When Captain Smith arrived at Pascataqua, in 1614, 
there was a large Indian population, on both its shores, 
called Newichewannocks, whose sachem resided at 
Quampegan, (now South Berwick). Soon after a pes- 
tilential disease swept off a large portion of his tribe, 
and opened a space for English settlers. 

The first house erected was by Thompson at Little 
Harbor, in 1623, and probably the next settlement was 
at South Berwick, where mills were erected in 1624, 
and immediately after, followed the settlements of New- 
castle, Portsmouth, Kittery Point, Dover, Sturgeon 
Creek, and Exeter. Between all these places there was 
constant intercourse, and " some political connection." 
The proprietors of the soil. Gorges and Mason, em- 
ployed as agent, on the Kittery side, Walter Neal, who 
dwelt part of the time at the Point. He had five asso- 
ciates in the various branches of trade, but until 1636 
the fur trade, fishing, and lumbering, were the chief em- 
ployments of the first settlers. About this time, a large 
number of families, some of them farmers, were sent 
by Gorges and Mason, and with them ample supplies 
of stock, provisions, and agricultural implements. 

The number of mills increased on the small rivers, 
and lumber and ship-timber soon floated down in gon- 
dolas, to Kittery Point and Newcastle, and were 
shipped to various ports, European and American. 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 7 

But the most lucrative, extensive, and durable business 
was the fisheries. It required small outfit, rarely failed 
of a good return, and a ready sale in American and 
foreign ports, or a profitable exchange at the South, for 
corn, tobacco, and naval stores ; in the West Indies, 
for tropical produce ; and in England, Spain, and Portu- 
gal, for dry goods, sails, cordage, wines, and fruit. 

Although civil dissensions and political changes 
occurred to impede the general prosperity, yet popula- 
tion and wealth gradually increased, until the disas- 
trous war of King Philip, in 1675, which lasted three 
years, and was attended with savage murders and con- 
flagrations, and a suspension of trade and of agricul- 
ture. Mr. Bray, father-in-law of the elder Pepperrell, 
arrived at Kittery Point some fifteen years before this 
war, and at the close of it, had suffered less than those 
engaged in other occupations. Fishing-vessels and 
boats were indispensable, and yielded to shipwrights 
and owners a good profit. At the return of peace, 
therefore, Mr. Bray was able to extend his business 
upon a large and lucrative scale. 

Ship-building was an early, and in time a very exten- 
sive branch of industry, on the Pascataqua and its 
tributary streams. Foreign merchants could supply 
themselves with vessels at a lower price than elsewhere. 
The Pepperrells built and sent many to the West India 
islands, laden with lumber, fish, oil, and live stock, to 
exchange for cargoes of West India produce for home 
consumption ; others to European markets, to exchange 
for dry goods, wine, and salt, or to sell both vessel and 
cargo. They also traded extensively in Southern colo- 
nial ports, exchanging cargoes of fish and West India 
goods for provisions and naval stores. But a much 
larger amount of business was done in the fisheries. 



8 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

They sometimes had more than a hundred small 
vessels at a time on the Grand Banks, part of which 
they manned themselves, but more of them were let on 
shares. They also extended their business to other 
rivers. The following letter, written by the elder Pep- 
perrell, in the year in which Sir William was born, 
illustrates the times. It was addressed to Captain 
John Hill, who commanded Fort Mary, at Saco, and 
acted as PepperrelPs agent. 

Kittery Point, November 12, 1696. 
Captain Hill, 

Sir, — With much trouble I have gotten men and 
sent for the sloop, and desire you to despatch them with 
all speed, for, if all things .be ready, they may be fitted 
to leave in two days as well as in seven years. If you 
and the carpenter think it convenient, and the ground 
has not too much descent, I think it may be safer and 
better to bend her sails before you launch her, so as to 
leave immediately. But I shall leave it to your man- 
agement, and desire you to hasten them day and night ; 
for, Sir, it will be dangerous tarrying there, on account 
of hostile savages in the vicinity, and it will be very 
expensive to keep the men upon pay. I send you a 
barrel of rum, and there is a cask of wine to launch 
with, (doubtless intended to treat female spectators). 
So with my services to yourself and lady, hoping they 
are all in good health, as I am at present, who are your 
humble servant at command, 

William Pepperrell. 

The launching of vessels was, in those days, attended 
by all persons of both sexes living in the vicinity, who 
expected an ample supply of good cheer, — rum for the 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 9 

men, and wine for the fairer sex. A barrel of each was 
the allowance on this occasion. The bottle was attrac- 
tive and probably indispensable in all gatherings for 
mutual aid, whether log-rolling, corn-husking, rafting of 
timber, or raising of houses, and a militia company 
could drill only under the excitement of a treat from 
the captain. Even at ordinations the reverend divines 
must have a glass to quicken the fervor of their devo- 
tions. In a bill of expenses incurred on such an occa- 
sion, in the vicinity of Kittery Point, there are charged 
eight quarts of rum and two of brandy, for the clergy 
and council. And still worse, funerals were made an 
occasion for circulating the intoxicating cup, where the 
sighs and tears of sympathizing friends were awakened 
by the customary beverage, spiced rum. We have 
before us several bills for funeral expenses, incurred in 
the early part of the last century, in which this is men- 
tioned. One of them specifies the ingredients thus : 
" Five gallons of rum, ten pounds of sugar, and half a 
pound of allspice, to make spiced rum." With such a 
network of ternptations spread over society, it is won- 
derful that any escaped — that all were not rendered 
confirmed inebriates ; but the Pepperrells, it is believed, 
always remained temperate. 

The settlements on the Pascataqua River and its 
branches, were formed into distinct governments, so 
that in 1641 there existed four little republics, Ports- 
mouth, Dover, Exeter, and Pascataqua. But the three 
former were this year united to Massachusetts, and in 
1652, the latter, which belonged to Maine, and had 
been incorporated, in 1647, as Kittery, was also added 
to that State, and in a short time the other settlements 
of Maine came under the Massachusetts government. 
With the exception of two or three years interruption. 



10 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

under the administration of Andros, the province of 
Maine continued a constituent part of Massachusetts 
for more than a century, until it was finally erected into 
an independent State. 

Kittery, which included the present towns of Kittery, 
Elliot, and the Berwicks, grew faster than any other 
town in Maine. The Point was accessible by water 
and convenient for ship-building, both as respects 
security against savage depredations, and facility for 
obtaining timber, by water, from the interior, and 
rigging and stores from Boston. In addition to this, 
sessions of the Supreme Court met here many years. 
In 1646 the town paid nearly one half of the amount 
of a tax assessed on the whole province of Maine.* 

In 1671, the militia of the province amounted to 
700, of whom 180 belonged to Kittery^ 80 to York, 100 
to Wells, and 80 to Saco.f 



*The following list of county rates, for tlie years 16G2, 1G88, and 
1 734, shows the comparative valuation of several toAvns, and their 
relative increase in that time. 

Kittery, 
York, 
Wells, 
Saco, 

-f Fortifications on the Pascataqua were begun by the original pro- 
prietors, who sent over several cannon which their agents placed on 
the north-east point of Newcastle, at the north of the great harbor, 
and called Fort Point. They laid out the ground about a bow-shot 
from the water-side to a high rock on which it was intended, in time, 
to build a principal fort. In 1666, it was decided by commissioners 
to build a fort on the east side of Great Island, where the former 
one was built, and which was to inclose the great rock and all the 
easterly part of the island. The customs and imports on goods im- 
ported into the harbor w^ere to be applied to the maintenance of the 



.662. 


1688. 


1734. 


10/. 


161. 


17/. 


7 


6 


9 


4 


4 


5 


6 


4 


10 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 11 

The elder Pepperrell was, like all the early settlers 
about the Pascataqua, trained to the use of fire-arms 
and to military exercises. His military services during 
his first few years, were performed at the fort on Great 
Island, or Newcastle. A garrison house was, however, 
previously erected and maintained at the Point, near 
his house, to which families might resort when threat- 
ened by sudden assaults from Indians ; and as early as 
1700 a fort was erected which went by his name. The 
celebrated warrior. Col. Church, in his eastern expedi- 
tion, in 1704, with 550 men, had orders "to send his 
sick and wounded to Casco, now Portland, or to Pep- 
perrell' s Fort at Kittery Point," (Williamson). This 
fort was probably a private concern, or at most built at 
village expense. But in 1714 the province of Massa- 
chusetts, in order to prevent the levying of improper 
duties by New Hampshire, made Kittery Point a port 
of entry and adopted measures to retain it as such. A 
breastwork was erected northerly of the Point, a plat- 
form laid for six guns, a naval officer and notary-public 
appointed, and all sea-captains and persons trading at 
the river were required to pay imposts, powder-money, 
and other duties, according to law. Pepperrell had 
command of this fort, which gave him the rank of 
captain. He also commanded the company of militia 
at the Point, and finally rose to the rank of lieutenant- 
colonel. 

Soon after the annexation of York county to Massa- 



fort, and the trainbands of Great Island and Kittery Point were dis- 
charged from all other duty, to attend to the service of it under 
Richard Cutts, who was appointed captain. It was voted in town 
meeting, in June, " that every dweller and liver in this town, over 
sixteen years of age, shall work at the fort one whole week." 



12 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

chusetts, in 1652, courts were established, which were 
held at Wells, York, and Kittery Point. There was a 
Supreme Court which made part of the Massachusetts 
circuit, and an inferior court called the Court of Com- 
mon Pleas, held in each county by local judges. 
Beside these there were justice courts, all nearly as at 
the present day. Mr. Pepperrell held the office of 
justice of the peace from 1690 to 1725. His trial- 
docket is still preserved, and exhibits the modes of 
punishing slight offences, — the whipping-post being in 
frequent requisition, which gradually yielded to fines 
and imprisonment. In 1715, John Wheelwright of 
Wells, William Pepperrell of Kittery, Charles Frost of 
Kittery, and Abraham Preble of York, were appointed 
Judges of the Court of Common Pleas. Mr. Pepper- 
rell continued on the bench many years, and his son 
(Sir) William, while a minor, served as clerk of the 
court. 

The elder Col. Pepperrell educated his children, con- 
sisting of two sons and six daughters, in the best man- 
ner the time and place permitted. They were all 
taught reading, writing, and arithmetic, and their 
chirography was very fair. Beyond this, very little was 
attempted. An English grammar is still in being 
which belonged to the family, but in which they 
probably made very little proficiency. They no doubt 
were assisted in the higher departments of their educa- 
tion by the Rev. John Newmarch, a near neighbor as 
well as pastor, and a graduate of Harvard. The 
daughters, like most of their neighbors, were well 
trained in domestic duties, but had little opportunity for 
mingling in polished society. Several of them married 
sea-captains who commanded their father's vessels. 
They derived from their father a fondness for trade, 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 13 

and often sent ventures to Europe and the West Indies 
in his ships, such as fish and furs, to exchange for fruits 
and fine dresses. Several of them were part owners of 
small vessels, bills of sale of which are still preserved. 
Nor does it appear strange that, secluded as they were 
from more appropriate female enterprises and em- 
ployments, they should imbibe some of the peculiar 
tastes of their father, and find him ready to gratify 
them. 

The religious training of the Bray and Pepperrell 
families was faithful and successful. Margery, after- 
wards Mrs. Pepperrell, and mother of Sir William, 
evinced early piety. Her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Bray, 
were "induced to leave England for the free enjoyment 
of their religious opinions." Beside the regular wor- 
ship at Portsmouth, they were favored with occasional 
preaching from the Isle of Shoals, and by Mr. Dummer 
of York, soon after their arrival in 1660, and there 
was a settled minister at Newcastle. 

As early as 1699 the Rev. John Newmarch was em- 
ployed at Kittery Point, by the year, and was 
allowed a parsonage. A church was organized, ,^^* ^' 
consisting of eighteen males and twenty-five 
females. The elder Pepperrell and wife headed the list 
of communicants after the minister, and several of their 
daughters, with their husbands, were members. Mr. 
Greenleaf, in his history of churches in Maine, mistakes 
in saying that Sir William was one of the original 
members. He was only eighteen years of age when 
the church was organized. His father was the founder 
and main pillar of the church and society, and in his 
will left a respectable legacy to the poor of the parish. 
But Sir William was not admitted to membership till 
1734. Mr. Newmarch continued sole pastor till 1751, 

2 



14 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAxM PEPPERRELL. 

and died three years after. Mr. Benjamin Stevens was 
ordained his colleague in 1751, and after three years, 
his successor. He continued in the luinistry till his 
death in 1791, when the church had dwindled down to 
a very small number, and soon after was nearly extin- 
guished. 

It is apparent, then, that the means for religious 
instruction and nurture, enjoyed by the Pepperrell 
family, were very favorable, and there is reason to infer 
that they were duly improved, since most of the chil- 
dren, sooner or later, became exemplary professing 
Christians. 

The elder Pepperrell ever retained a strong attach- 
ment to his father-land, and seemed to anticipate the 
pleasure of returning to it, after he should have 
acquired an independent fortune. But the machinery 
necessary for doing this, when once in motion, was too 
extensive and complex to permit of his removal or 
even temporary absence without great sacrifice ; it 
required his constant superintendence. It appears, 
however, that in early life he made one voyage to 
Rotterdam. At the age of sixty, he wrote to his friend 
Mr. Roe, merchant in Ravistock, Wales, to purchase 
him an estate near him. One was named to him soon 
after, but reverses of fortune by shipwrecks, and the 
capture of many of his fishing vessels, had intervened, 
and drew from him the following reply. " You wrote 
me that the Colson estate was for sale, but I have met . 
with so many losses of late, that the sum asked is - 
more than I can raise, but if I could purchase one - 
worth four thousand pounds, I would soon pay for it. - 
The times have been such that I have lost more than - 
three thousand pounds. If it be possible, I hope to - 
come and see you once more before I die. I pray you. 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 15 

remember my love to all my friends in general, wishing 
you all happiness." He writes again some years after, 
and repeats his desire to purchase an estate, intending 
it rather for his son William and daughter Doro- 
thy, than for his own occupancy. Mr. Roe writes, 
in 1723, " I am very glad to hear your son William 
and daughter Dorothy have a mind to settle in 
our country, but I cannot think of an estate near the 
seaside at present ; but if you have a mind to one 
seven or eight miles from me, in Dugburrow parish, 
worth fifty to sixty pounds a year, you can have it." 
It does not appear, however, that either of the Pepper- 
rells, excepting Captain Andrew, ever visited England, 
until 1747, when Sir William entered London, and // ^ 
was, by both king and people, greeted as the hero of 
Louisbourg. 

Colonel Pepperrell, as before observed, reared a 
family of two sons and six daughters. Grave histo- 
rians mention only one son (Sir William) and two 
daughters, who married Hon. John Frost, and Hon. 
John Newmarch. A want of accurate information 
respecting his family is attributable to the remote situa- 
tion of the parish records. The village in which he 
lived, though a place comparatively of great note and 
extensive trade in his day, sank into obscurity soon 
after the Revolution, and became the residence, chiefly, 
of a few fishermen, who even occupied his own former 
stately mansion. In addition to this. Sir William died 
at the close of the French War in 1759, and the Revo- 
lutionary war which ensued soon after, engrossed public 
attention, to the exclusion of preceding scenes and 
events, in which the Pepperrells were engaged. Hence 
the traces of their family ties and relationships were 
nearly eflaced from memory. The name, moreover, 



16 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

becoming extinct, is almost forgotten even by some in 
whose veins the Pepperrell blood circulates. 

The parish records show that he had the following 
children, all of whom arrived at matmity, and were 
married, namely, 1. Andrew; 2. Mary; 3. Margery; 4. 
Joanna ; 5. Miriam ; 6. William (the Baronet) ; 7. 
Dorothy; 8. Jane. 

1. Andrew was born July 1, 1681 ; was employed 
as clerk in his father's store ; joined him as partner 
under the firm of William Pepperrell & Son ; was 
supercargo and captain of a merchantman ; resided at 
Newcastle, and was agent for mercantile houses abroad. 
He married Jane, daughter of Robert Elliot, Esq., in 
1707, who bore him two children, Sarah, who married 
Charles Frost, and Margery, who married William 
Wentworth. Andrew Pepperrell died about 1713, was 
buried at Newcastle. His widow married Charles 
Frost of Kittery. 

2. Mary^ born September 5, 1685, married Hon. John 
Frost, and had sixteen children, eleven of whom 
reached maturity. Her second husband was Rev. Ben- 
jamin Colman, D. D., and her third. Rev. Benjamin 
Prescott, of Danvers, Mass. She died 1766, aged 
eighty. 

3. Margery^ born 1689, married Peletiah Whitemore, 
and had four children. He was lost near the Isle of 
Shoals. Her second husband was Elihu Gunnison, 
Judge of the Court of Common Pleas, who resided at 
Kittery Point. 

4. Joanna^ born June 22, 1692, married Dr. George 
Jackson ; had six daughters, and died 1725. 

5. Miriam, born September 3, 1694, married Andrew 
Tyler, merchant in Boston, and had two sons and three 
daughters. 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 17 

6. WiUiam (the Baronet), the subject of this memoir. 

7. Dorothy^ born July 23, 1698, married Andrew 
Watkins, who commanded one of Pepperrell's vessels. 
She had two sons, Andrew and John. Her second 
husband was Hon. Joseph Newmarch. 

8. Jane^ born 1701, married Benjamin Clark of Kings- 
ton, N. H., and after his decease, 1729, she married 
William Tyler, brother of Andrew, of Boston. She 
had two children by Clark, named William and Ben- 
jamin. 

The elder Pepperrell lived to see his son William 
advanced to the highest stations in the gift of the pro- 
vincial government or of the people. As he approached 
the term of fourscore, the infirmities of age weighed 
heavily upon him, and finally terminated his useful and 
exemplary life on the 15th of February, 173}. His 
widow survived him until April 24, 1741. 

In his will he left his daughters five hundred pounds 
each, in addition to their marriage portions and occa- 
sional advancements, and one half of the household 
furniture on the decease of their mother. To his son 
William he left the residue of his estate. To the 
church at Kittery Point, sixty pounds to buy a service 
of plate for the communion table ; sixty pounds to the 
parish to buy corn for the poor, and fifty in money ; 
thirty pounds to his nieces in Ravestock, and five 
pounds to the poor of the church there ; to his mulatto 
servant his freedom ; to Colonels Wheelwright and 
Gerrish, five pounds each, and Rev. John Newmarch 
ten pounds. 

Letters of condolence from Col. Waldo, and others, 
were written to his son William, after the decease of 
his father. A few extracts from one, by Governor 
Belcher, so effaced as to be hardly legible, show the 

2* 



18 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

kind feelings cherished by him for both of the Pepper- 
rells. 

Boston, March 11, 1731. 

My much beloved Friexnd, — I have received the 
token of respect to Mrs. Belcher and myself, with your 
sorrowful favor of the 1st instant, on the melancholy 
occasion of the death of my late worthy old friend, 
your father. 

I heartily condole with your honored mother, your- 
self, and all the good family, who have lost a tender 
head and father. God had blessed him with a large 

share of prudence and understanding The 

blessing of the God of Jacob always rest upon you 
and yours, and may you greatly honor yourself in being 

(under God) the stay of your honored mother 

Sir, I have exceeded on this head, since every one 
knows that Madam Pepperrell is blessed in a dutiful 
son. I wish much peace and love among the whole 
family ; and am, honored Sir, 

Your assured friend and humble servant, 

Jonathan Belcher. 

Madam Pepperrell survived her consort seven years. 
The following notice of her death, and brief respectful 
tribute to her character, is contained in the Boston Post- 
Boy:- 

" Kittery, April 30, 1741. Last Friday (after a short 
illness) departed this life, and this day was decently 
interred. Madam Margery Pepperrell, of this place, in 
the eighty-first year of her age. She was born at Ply- 
mouth, in Old England, came hither with her parents 
in infancy, who left their native country for the free 
enjoyment of their religious principles. 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 19 

" She was, through the whole course of her life, very 
exemplary for unaffected piety and amiable virtues, 
especially her charity, her courteous affability, her 
prudence, meekness, patience, and her unweariedness 
in well-doing. As it pleased God to afford her worldly 
advantages, and a large capacity for doing good, so she 
improved them to the honor of God and the service of 
her generation ; being charitable without ostentation, 
and making it her constant rule to do good to all as 
she had opportunity. She was not only a loving and 
discreet wife, and tender parent, but a sincere friend to 
all her acquaintance. 

" She hath left behind her one son and five daughters, 
and many grandchildren, icJio rise vj) and call her 
blessed. She was justly esteemed while living, and at 
death as much regretted. As she lived a life of faith 
and constant obedience to the gospel, so she died with 
great inward peace and comfort, and the most cheerful 
resignation to the will of God. 

" The work of righteousness shall be peace, and 
the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for 
ever." 



20 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



CHAPTER 11. 

William Pepperrell, Junior, Sir William, was born 
June 27, 1696. His boyhood was passed at the village 
school, where he learned to read, write, and cypher. 
Under a private instructor, he was taught the art of 
surveying land, and of navigating a ship, and acquired 
some knowledge of geography. His early manuscript 
letters evince ignorance of the rudiments of English 
grammar. His chirography was beautiful, which ren- 
dered him very useful to his father. When not more 
than ten years old, he assisted in writing his father's 
justice docket, in copying his letters, and keeping his 
accounts, and probably, soon after, acted as clerk in his 
store. This brought him into immediate contact with 
those who traded with his father, including nearly all 
the persons settled on the banks of the Pascataqua and 
its tributaries. His education, was, therefore, exclu- 
sively practical, and imparted early and clear insight 
into human character, and into the ways and means of 
successful trade and financiering. 

Cradled amid the dangers of savage warfare, and 
while the lurking foe was prowling about the very^ 
neighborhood, and ever and anon lighting upon unsus- 
pecting victims, his young mind must have become 
familiarized to tales of horror. While nestling in his 
mother's arms, we may well imagine him often listen- 
ing to the recital of what she had seen and heard of 
exciting incidents and dire alarms in her day, — how 
her neighbor and intimate friend. Major Charles Frost, 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 21 

was waylaid and shot while returnins: from church, — 
how her neighbor, Mr. Shapleigh, was killed, his son 
taken captive, his fingers bitten off, and the bleeding 
vessels seared with a hot iron, — how her intimate 
friend, Mrs. Ursula Cutts, after spreading her hospitable 
board for the Waldron family, and while awaiting their 
arrival to dinner, was pounced upon by lurking savages, 
and herself and field laborers tomahawked and scalped, 

— how twenty-one persons were killed or taken captive 
at Sandy Beach, (Rye,) only three or four miles distant, 

— how another party came there and killed fourteen 
and captured four others, and burnt the village, — and 
how numerous massacres and savage cruelties were 
perpetrated only a few miles distant, at Cocheco, 
Oyster River, and Salmon Falls. 

Such were some of the scenes and events that trans- 
pired in the vicinity of Kittery Point. The Indian war 
was raging when Pepperrell was born, and continued 
three years. After four years suspension it was 
renewed, and lasted till 1713, making thirteen years 
f oi hostilities during the first seventeen of his life, and 
during the last ten of them, the war raged from Port- 
land to the Pascataqua, destroying nearly all the settle- 
ments, excepting a garrison or two, and even in Kittery 
and its vicinity were a large number of murders, many 
of them among the friends and acquaintances of the 
Pepperrell family. Such a training must have awa- 
kened in his impressible mind a desire for revenge, and 
for deeds of heroism. Nor were there wanting other 
incentives calculated to foster a martial spirit. He 
was, in youth, a frequent spectator of military parades 
and exercises in his father's company drills, and of the 
exercise of cannon at the Fort, and at Great Island, all 
which had their influence ; — even worshipping assem- 



22 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

blies had sentinels posted around, and those within 
were wont to pray with their hands resting on their tire- 
locks, and public safety required that every man should 
be a soldier. No wonder, then, that young Pepperrell 
was imbued with a military spirit at an early age. At 
sixteen he bore arms in patrol duty, and in keeping 
ward and watch. 

On the death of his only brother Andrew, the firm ^ 
was changed from William Pepperrell & Son, to Wil- ^ 
liam Pepperrells, which continued more than a quarter - 
of a century, until his father's death. The occupation 
of the firm was not that of a fancy goods shop. They 
dealt in lumber, naval stores, fish, and provisions, which 
required strong muscular exercise, and doubtless tended 
to give William his robust frame. His juvenile exer- 
cise was probably mostly aquatic, as nearly all inter- 
course with other places, whether for business or 
pleasure, was held by water. This early taught him 
the use of the oar, than which no exercise is better 
adapted to promote muscular development and the 
power of enduring fatigue. Nor was his mind under 
less favorable influences for vigorous growth. Removed -- 
from the enervating effects of refined society, and asso- - 
elating daily with lumber-men, ship-builders, and the 
hardy sons of Neptune, he was familiar with the rough 
and rugged aspect of human life, and imbibed its 
hardier influences both in body and mind. 

The Pepperrells extended their sphere of business, 
and for some years were the largest merchants on the 
Pascataqua, or even in New England. Lumber and \ 
ship-timber floated down the river in gondolas from the 
head of tide-waters; and fish from the Grand Banks 
and the Shoals were poured into their warehouses ; 
and cargoes were sent to the West Indies, to Portugal, 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 23 

the Mediterranean, and England, or exchanged. Often 
his vessels and cargoes were sold together, which pro- 
moted the extension of ship-building, one of the chief 
sources of their wealth. The lumber and carpenter's 
work were paid for in merchandise and provisions. 
Naval stores and provisions were obtained from the 
Carolinas, in exchange for fish and West India and 
European goods, and cordage, iron, hemp, and fishing- 
tackle from England, for vessels and cargoes sold there. 
Their bankers in Plymouth and London received the 
proceeds of cargoes and vessels sold in the Mediter- 
ranean, Portugal, France, and England, and answered 
the bills of exchange drawn on them in favor of Boston 
merchants, to whom they were sold at a great advance, 
and paid for in such goods as were needed to complete 
PepperrelPs assortment, and in provincial money. This 
money was expended in real estate, bought at low 
prices, and which rapidly increased in value. Such 
was the circle of operations by which the Pepperrells 
amassed a princely fortune. 

But they greatly augmented their estate by the pur- 
chase of an extensive tract of land on the eastern side 
of Saco River. In 1716, they bought of the represent- 
atives of Benjamin Blackman, who had purchased 
from the original proprietors, Gibbons and Bonython, a 
large part of the present township of Saco, extending 
from the sea several miles along Saco River, including 
all the mill sites on which stand the present large cotton 
factories, and also most of the land in that flourishing 
town. The bargain was made by the younger William, 
first for two thirds of the land which he bought of 
Samuel Walker, of New Jersey, and immediately after- 
ward the other third, bought of Thomas Goodwill, of 
Boston. Being a minor, the transaction was performed 



24 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

in the name of the elder Pepperrell, who paid Mr. 
Goodwill for his third one hundred and forty pounds, 
current money, and took the deed in his own name, 
and afterward conveyed it to his son. In 1729 the 
younger William bought of William Corbain, of 
Boston, an adjoining tract eastward of the former, 
and became thus sole proprietor of the greater part of 
the towns of Saco and Scarboro'. The rise in value 
of these lands, added to the profits yielded by the mills 
they erected, were of themselves an ample fortune for 
one house. 

After the purchase of Saco, young Pepperrell, at the 
age of twenty-one, seems to have assumed the duties ~ 
of an out-door partner, in directing improvements on 
this large estate, and in contracting for the building of 
vessels on Pascataqua and Saco Rivers. ^- 

Ship-building was rendered particularly profitable by _ 
the policy of the home government, which favored this 
branch of industry more than any other, insomuch that 
the ship-carpenters in the Thames complained, in 1724, 
that their trade was hurt, and their workmen emigrated, 
caused by the building of so many vessels in New 
England. Parliament had prohibited the manufacture 
of woollens in America, for exportation from one 
colony to another, and the hatters in London were 
favored by a law forbidding the hatters in New 
England to employ more than one apprentice. But 
the board of trade despaired of any remedy for the 
ship-carpenters, " since it would hardly do to prohibit 
the building of ships by the colonists." Pepperrell, 
therefore, found it profitable to embark extensively in 
this business. He also managed the affairs of the firm 
in Boston, assisted by his brother-in-law William Tyler, 
a merchant of that town. Meanwhile the elder Pep- 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 25 

perrell attended more to indoor trade, particularly to 
the fishing interest, and much of his time was neces- 
sarily devoted to the care of his numerous family. 

The ascendency which the Pepperrell firm enjoyed 
over any other mercantile house in New England, gave 
it a large agency in the transaction of the pecuniary 
affairs of the province with the mother country. This 
branch of business was conducted by the younger 
Pepperrell, and brought him into an intimate acquaint- 
ance with public men in Boston ; and this, while it 
cultivated courtly manners and an easy address, for 
which he became distinguished, introduced him into 
the best society^^ and favored his advancement in mili- 
tary and political life. He had no sooner passed 
through his minority than he was commissioned justice 
of the peace, and captain of a company of cavalry^. 
He was soon after promoted to be a major and lieuten- 
ant-colonel, and at the age of thirty, was made colonel, 
which placed him in command of all the militia of 
Maine. 

It was about the same time that he was 
chosen representative of Kittery, which then 
included Elliot, and next year he received the follow- 
ing notice of his appointment to the board of council- 
lors : — 

Boston, June 1, 1727. 

Sir, — I am directed by the Honorable Lieutenant- 
Governor and Council to acquaint you that you are 
elected and appointed a councillor or assistant for the 
ensuing year, and that your attendance at the council- 
board is desired as soon as may be. 

Your humble servant, 

J. WiLLARD. 

3 



26 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

His appointment was renewed thirty-two successive 
years until his death, during eighteen of which he 
served as president of the board. 

Among the families of distinction in Boston to whom ~ 
young Pepperrell was presented, was that of the late - 
Grove Hirst Esquire, deceased, an opulent merchant,- 
whose wife was daughter of Judge Sewall of the 
Supreme Court. The Hirst family were connected by - 
marriage with Rev. Samuel Moody of York, whose ^ 
wife was a Sewall, and whose niece, named Mary ~ 
Hirst, occasionally visited there. Mr. Pepperrell had - 
met her at her gTandfather's, Judge Sewall, in Boston, - 
and on the strength of the acquaintance there formed, - 
called on her, at York, more than once. This gave - 
much annoyance to the parson's son, who, in his 
journal, has recorded that he was bewildered by the 
attractions of the young lady. Young Moody was ^ 
then a schoolmaster, and afterward settled in the minis- 
try in the north parish of York. It is no wonder that - 
his pretensions were outrivalled by those of Mr. Pep- - 
perrell, the heir of a fortune, and favored with engaging - 
manners and the tact which fashionable life and politi- 
cal eminence confers. With assiduity and much skill, ^ 
making presents of gold rings, a large hoop and other ~ 
ornaments, he soon succeeded in winning her affections, ^ 
and their marriage was solemnized the 16th of March, 
1723, when he was twenty-seven years of age. , The 
happy couple resided in the family mansion at Kittery - 
Point, which was enlarged by an addition to the north ~ 
end, giving the whole a stately appearance. On the ~ 
death of his parents, the whole came into the posses- ^ 
sion of the son. 

In 1730, Governor Belcher wished to renew all his 
civil commissions, which, however, had not invariably 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 27 

been done by his predecessors on coming into office. 
He was desirous also of appointing a favorite to the 
clerkship of the Court of Common Pleas, which be- 
longed of right to the judges, and these preferred the 
old incumbent. Disappointed in his aim, he removed 
from the bench all the judges, and appointed in their 
•^ place William Pepperrell Junior, chief justice, Samuel 
^Came, Timothy Gerrish, and Joseph Moody, associates, 
through whom he was enabled to bring his favorite into 
place. This office of chief justice, Mr. Pepperrell con- 
tinued to hold until the day of his decease in 1759. 

Immediately after this appointment as chief justice 
on the bench, Mr. Pepperrell endeavored to qualify 
himself for its duties by the study of law. By an 
invoice still preserved, he ordered from London a small 
law library. Among these books were Danvers' Abridg- 
ment of the Common Law, a law dictionary. The 
Complete Solicitor, and some others. 

His biographer. Rev. Dr. Stevens, says : " Here it 
was that, being intrusted with the execution of the 
laws, he distributed justice with equity and impartiality. 
And though he was not insensible of the necessity 
of discountenancing vice by proper punishments, yet 
the humanity of his temper disposed him to make all 
those allowances which might be alleged in extenua- 
tion of the fault." He was not ignorant of the forms 
of judicial proceedings when he took his seat upon the 
bench as chief justice. The courts had for several 
years been held in or near the family mansion, and his 
father had served many years as an associate judge, 
and he had himself wiiile a minor held the office 
of clerk of the court. 

With all their vastly extended and diversified com- 
merce and navigation, it should be mentioned to 



28 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

the credit of the Pepperrell firm, that they never 
imported slaves from Africa. Like all persons of their 
day who possessed the means, they owned a few slaves, . 
probably ten or a dozen, whom they purchased in the 
vicinity.. One of these was a cooper named Lymas, 
whose occupation was an essential part of the estab- 
lishment, in making casks for fish and oil, and for 
carrying supplies of water for ships' use. Lymas was 
one day missing, and a vessel commanded by a 
Captain Ward had just sailed for Portugal. Pep- 
perrell wrote to his correspondents in Oporto and 
Lisbon to search said vessel. It appeared, on inquiry 
of the crew, that Lymas had concealed himself on 
board before sailing, and was not discovered till some 
days subsequently, when he made himself known. In 
a few days after, he was missing, and never being 
found it was supposed by the crew that he had fallen 
overboard in the night. 

On one occasion Benjamin Bullard, a merchant 
of Antigua, shipped to Kittery Point five negroes, con- 
signed to the firm of Pepperrells. He received the 
following answer, dated June 25, 1719 : " Sir, — I 
received yours by Captain Morris, with bills of lading 
for five negroes and one hogshead of rum. One negro 
woman, marked Y on the left breast, died in about 
three weeks after her arrival, in spite of medical aid 
which I procured. All the rest died at sea. I am 
sorry for your loss. It may have resulted from deficient 
clothing so early in the spring." ^ 

Few other incidents worthy of recital occurred in 
the life of Pepperrell, during the first ten years after his 
father's decease. His mercantile and other operations 
were continued, his real estate rose in value, and 
though he sustained occasional losses by shipwrecks 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 29 

and bankruptcies, his fortune on the whole was aug- 
mented. The prestige which this gave him, together 
with the faithful performance of his duty in the varied 
and important offices he held, secured to him the 
confidence of the public, and with his popular man- 
ners gave him a commanding influence throughout 
New England. 

On the death of his father, in 1734, he seems to have 
received strong religious impressions, which proved to 
be lasting, and led him to an open profession and 
union with the church. His letters to relatives and 
intimate friends, from this time forward, are imbued 
with religious sentiment. In reply to a letter from 
his friend Colonel Samuel Waldo, he writes : " I take 
kindly your expression of sorrow for my great loss 
in the death of my aged and honored father, and 
desire that God in his great goodness and mercy 
would be pleased to fit and prepare us all for that 
untried state of existence to which we are all hasten- 
ing." In all his letters to his clerical friends, he solicits 
their intercession in his behalf. He often entertained 
the clergy as visitors at his house, and among others, 
the itinerant Whitefield met with a cordial reception. 
In 1741, his only daughter Elizabeth was admitted into 
full communion in the church. 

When ordinations occurred in the neighboring 
churches, he was usually appointed one of the dele- 
gates from his parish to assist, especially when not 
engaged in official duties as councillor or judge. 

At the funeral obsequies of his father, Mr. Pepperrell 
bestowed every mark of respect that filial affection 
dictated. He, shortly after, ordered from London the 
marble structure that now stands over the vault con- 
taining the mouldering remains of the Pepperrell 

3* 



30 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

family, which was erected about the year 1736. This 
is almost the only relic of Pepperrell's day now 
remaining as it was at Kittery Point ; and even 
here, the vault beneath became so dilapidated a few 
years since, that water gained admission through its 
crumbling roof, and washed the dissolving remains 
of the tenants into an undistinguishable mass, and 
but for the respect entertained for the memory of the 
illustrious dead, by a female remotely descended from 
the baronet, the whole structure would long since have 
fallen into ruins. By her exertions and limited means 
the tomb was put in good repair.* 

The legacies left by the will of the elder Pepperrell 
were numerous but not large, the great bulk of his 
property descending to his son. As a matter of course, 
the other heirs were disappointed and dissatisfied. 
The numerous ships, farms, mills, stocks, warehouses, 
merchandise, etc., were known, and each daughter's 
'husband anticipated a large bequest. But he directed 
only about five hundred pounds current money to 
.be paid to each daughter, in addition to their marriage 
^portions and other advancements, with half of his 
liousehold furniture after his wife's decease, and from 
twenty to fifty pounds to each grandchild. Some 
of the sons-in-law had already anticipated a portion 



* To the tourist who may hereafter visit the Pepperrell seat and 
tomb at Kittery Point, it may be interesting to know the cost of the 
smarble structure which was imported from London. 

The marble and sculpture cost, . . SOL 6s. lOd, 
Searching for the arms at the Herald office, 3 6 

Deal cases, 3 11 

Cartage, wharfage, etc., ... 10 

Total, 34 11 4 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 31 

of their bequests, by indebtedness to the deceased. 
But they discreetly remained silent under their dis- 
appointment. There was, however, one exception 
worth noticing; Andrew Tyler who married Miriam 
Pepperrell, had a daughter who married William 
Williams, son of Rev. W^illiam, and a graduate of 
Harvard. Young Williams resided in Boston, and 
was patronized in trade and on intimate terms with, 
his wife's grandfather Pepperrell and her uncle Wil- 
liam. This Williams and his father-in-law Tyler, 
were evidently vexed by the will, as appears by letters 
that passed between young Williams and his uncle, 
whom he reflected upon as influencing if not dictating 
the terms of the will. The concluding letter of his 
uncle reads thus : — 

Yours of the 5th instant I have received, and 
assure you that at present I cannot find my account 
in reading such a long letter, much less to answer it, 
but will say that I believe no person who has heard of 
Mr. Williams' education could think that he VvTote such 
a letter as I answered, without he had been directed, 
and although you in your last write otherwise, yet 
it is with a great deal of difficulty that I believe it. 

I think it must turn out to the honor and credit 
of all persons to endeavor to support the credit of their 
relations. As to what you write about my coming 
to the council-board, I should have been glad had 
I been better qualified before coming there. But I 
have this to satisfy me in my coming short, that I 
never made the least interest for it. But such hints 
would be worth minding if they were written by a 
man of more years than yourself. I thank you for all 
the kind services you have done for me, and if you 



32 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

please to get the account for those things you bought 
for me ready, hope to be in Boston next week and 
make you full satisfaction. 

I am your humble servant, 

William Pepperrell. 

It would gratify curiosity to know what Williams 
wrote which the above letter of his uncle purports to 
answer. It was doubtless caustic and insolent. A 
reconciliation was however effected, and many friendly 
letters passed between them in after years, and young 
Williams served as assistant secretary to Pepperrell, at 
Louisburg.* 

After the decease of the elder Pepperrell, the man- 
agement of the extensive and diversified affairs of the 
firm devolved entirely on the son, added to which were 
the duties of the several offices he sustained, as justice 
of the peace, chief justice of the Court of Common 
Pleas, councillor, and colonel of the Yorkshire regi- 
ment, together with the care of his own family, and of 
his widowed sisters and their children, and many poor 
relatives. 

Residing in a part of the country more exposed than 

* This Mr. AVilliams lived to marry three wives, the first a Tyler, 
granddaughter of the elder Col. Pepperrell, by whom he had one 
son who was a surgeon with Col. Ephraim Williams when he fell 
near Fort William Henry. He died of smallpox. The second, a 
Wells, by whom he had several children, one of them named William 
Pepperrell. The third wife Avas Hannah Dickinson, who was unkind 
to his children by his second wife, and they were turned adrift and 
induced to join the Shakers at New Lebanon. Major Stoddard 
remarks of Col. Williams, " that he married his first wife. Miss Miriam 
Tyler, for good sense, and got it, his second wife. Miss Wells, for love 
and beauty, and had it, and his third wife. Aunt Hannah Dickinson, 
for good qualities, and got horribly cheated." 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 33 

any other to the ravages of a cruel and perfidious 
enemy, he felt the importance of vigilance and con- 
stant preparation for defence. He accordingly issued 
orders frequently to all the captains to muster their 
companies, inspect their arms, and report their condi- 
tion. Many orders of the kind are still preserved as 
autographs. Impressed with the difficult and respon- 
sible duties devolving upon him, he called a 
meeting of the commissioned officers at Port- 
land, with whom he consulted and made overtures for 
a better organization, equipment, and discipline of the 
militia under his command. More ardor and military 
spirit were now diffiised among the officers and 
soldiers, — their ranks were filled, and new companies 
were formed. They all knew how to use the firelock, 
were marksmen, and in Indian warfare, had been 
employed in scouts and ambuscades, but exercises and 
evolutions in large bodies, beyond single company 
trainings, they had yet to learn. In order to favor 
battalion and regimental muster, the Yorkshire regi- 
ment, comprising all the troops of Maine, was divided 
into two regiments. The western one, compris- 
ing the present county of York, he continued to 
command, and the eastern or new regiment was trans- 
ferred to Col. Samuel Waldo, of Falmouth, who had 
previously been his lieutenant-colonel. The former 
consisted of one thousand five hundred and sixty-five, 
and the latter of one thousand two hundred and ninety 
soldiers. 

Massachusetts and New Hampshire were united 
under one governor, each province having a lieutenant- 
governor. In 1717, John Wentworth was appointed 
lieutenant-governor of New Hampshire, in place of 
Vaughn removed, Shute being governor of both 



34 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

provinces. He was succeeded by Governor Burnet, 
who died in 1729, and Jonathan Belcher was appointed 
the following year. Wentworth and his two sons, 
Benning Wentworth and Mark Hunking, were in trade 
in Portsmouth, and a spirit of rivalry existed between 
their house and the Pepperrells. The office held by 
the former gave them an advantage over the latter, 
in the exercise of which, they seized one of Pepperrell's 
vessels for a violation, real or pretended of the revenue 
laws. The case was to be tried in London. Pepper- 
rell writes to his agent, who went out in 1723 to 
defend the suit. 

Pascataqua, Febnianj 9, 1723. 

Elisha Cook, Esq. 

Sir, — Inclosed you have several affidavits, which we 
took with thoughts that if there were occasion, they 
might serve us in our case relating to the seizing of our 
ship by the instigation of Lieutenant-Governor Went- 
worth. But if they will not be serviceable for that, 
they will show how that man will strain at a gnat and 
swallow a camel. He and his two sons, being con- 
siderable traders, will endeavor to monopolize all the 
trade of this place, and to discourage and depress 
others. But you know the man ; therefore I shall not 
trouble you further on this head. We would not have 
it exposed or known that we send you the above 
affidavits, you being sensible that situated as he is, 
it lies in his power to hurt trading men. 

We are with respect, etc., etc. 

W. P. - 

While it was uncertain whether Belcher or Shute 
would be appointed governor of Massachusetts and 
New Hampshire, both of them striving for the office, 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 35 

Lieutenant-Governor Wentworth wrote a complimen- 
tary letter to Belcher in London. On his first visit 
to New Hampshire, Belcher accepted an invitation 
from Wentworth to reside at his house. But he 
soon learned that Wentworth had written a similar 
letter to Shute, which he highly resented as savor- 
ing of duplicity. In this originated a feud attended 
with great persecution on the part of Wentworth, 
until his death in 1730 ; and, his successor, David 
Dunbar, continued the same course, until finally by 
unfair means, he and his friends and Wentworth's 
friends, effected Belcher's removal in 1741. William 
Shirley succeeded Belcher as governor of Massachu- 
setts. 

Benning Wentworth, son of the deceased lieutenant- 
governor, who had opposed Belcher with such untiring 
zeal and asperity, was unfortunate in trade in conse- 
quence of the neglect of the Spanish government 
to fulfil its engagements to him for timber, which 
he had furnished to the amount of sixty thousand 
dollars. He sought redress in person at the court of 
Spain, and while in that country he received consign- 
ments of cargoes from Pepperrell, which led to a 
friendly correspondence that indicated a better state 
of feeling than formerly existed when they were rival 
merchants. From Spain he went to London, and 
arrived there pending the consideration of a memorial 
of citizens of New Hampshire, to have that province 
made a distinct government. By the aid of friends 
this measure was accomplished, and himself was 
appointed governor. Pepperrell's agent, Silas Hooper, 
WTites to him from London : " I find the New 
Hampshire province have got the better of the ,"7^*^^' 
Massachusetts in their appeal about the division 



36 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

of the provinces, the particulars of which, Captain 
Rymes will inform you, as also of its being separated 
from the other government, and is to have a governor 
of its own, and that Benning Wentworth is talked 
of to be the man, which time will show; and if so, 
I know not whether I may congratulate you on the 
happy change or not, which you must be the best 
judge of." 

"Wentworth arrived in Portsmouth amid the acclama- 
tions of all the populace, who had assembled to wel- 
come his return as governor. 

In 1727 a new tier of towns in the rear of those on 
the seaboard, extending from Salmon Falls to Andros- 
coggin River, was surveyed and offered to settlers 
on the most favorable terms. This was done to 
protect the old towns that had suffered so much by 
Indian depredations, and also to provide farms for 
those who fought in the Indian wars, or who had 
suffered heavy losses by fire and the tomahawk. 
Agents were appointed by the general court to convey 
these lands to such claimants and to other settlers. 
Phillipstown (now Sanford) was assigned to the agency 
of Col. William Pepperrell who signed the deeds of 
conveyance. 

A subject of perpetual agitation and altercation 
between the royal governors and the legislatures 
of the provinces, was the governor's salary. The king, 
from time to time, instructed that the amount should 
be settled permanently, but the representatives insisted 
on voting it from year to year, in order, as they 
pretended, that they might vary it according to the 
amount of services rendered, intending no doubt, to 
make it available as a means of securing the favorable 
influence of the governor in whatever would promote 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 37 

the welfare of the colony. Governor Burnet insisted 
on the permanent salary with great pertinacity, but the 
house resisted until the session was prolonged five 
months, when they were prorogued. But a majority 
of the council, including Pepperrell, considered it pru- 
dent to comply with the instruction, as the salary could 
be only during the life or the commission of the 
present governor. When, therefore. Governor Belcher, 
on Burnet's death, was appointed and pressed this 
claim, he found ready support from Pepperrell, as he 
did in nearly all his favorite measures, — and a har- 
mony of opinion and strong mutual friendship existed 
between them from the beginning of their career 
through life. 

In 1740, when paper-money had increased through- 
out New England to an alarming extent, relief was 
sought in a " Land Bank," based on mortgages upon 
real estate. Governor Belcher opposed it in every 
st^e of its progress, much to the dissatisfaction of the 
house, who, soon after, united with his enemies in Newr 
Hampshire and in England, in a petition for his 
removal. Although the crown approved of his course 
on the bank, his enemies assailed him on other subjects 
with such zeal and virulence, that he was recalled with- 
out a trial or investigation, and was succeeded by 
Governor Shirley. He sought redress in England, and 
on the eve of his departure his friends united in a 
fair representation of his conduct to men of influ- 
ence at court. His friend Pepperrell was appealed 
to in his favor, by Councillor Allen, in the following- 
letter : — 

Honored Sir, — Mr. Foye, the bearer, waits on you 
with your friend Governor Belcher's letter, relating to 

4 



38 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

his intended voyage to Great Britain, which he under- 
takes upon good encouragement of success, and as you 
have ever been of the number of his steady friends 
upon honorable terms, and a true patriot of your 
country upon the best principles, he flatters himself 
you will on this important conjuncture to himself 
and family, as well as of the province, give a further 
proof of your friendship, in assisting him with your 
interest on the other side of the water. And from the 
great regard I pay (without even a suspicion of flattery) 
to your noble and generous principles, for the best 
interest of your country, I take the liberty to beg and 
entreat your favor . for our friend who has been so 
greatly abused. To the plea of friendship, allow me 
to add that this voyage (as I apprehend) is the last 
remedy to save a sinking country from being the prey 
of land bankers and beggars, which, as they are now 
playing the game, is nothing but buying and selling 
the country. This I take to be a point in which ^i|<ery 
gentleman of fortune is interested, and so of great con- 
sequence to a gentleman of your superior fortune ; on 
this account, particularly, have several good gentlemen 
here given their assistance, and, I allow myself no 
room to doubt of your kind and generous aid, which 
I can urge with the better grace, as I am heartily 
engaged in the affair so well calculated for the good 
of my country, and the security of my own little 
fortune. Excuse this freedom, and believe me to be, 
with great regard. 

Your most obedient servant, 

James Allen. 

Pepperrell joined most cordially in the effort to sus- 
tain and help his old " friend and his father's friend," 



PARENTAGE AND EARLY YEARS. 39 

which resulted in Belcher's appointment as governor 
of New Jersey, where he passed the remainder of his 
days, enjoying the esteem and respect of his old friends 
in New England, and in the interchange of friendly 
sentiment by letter. 

The children of William Pepperrell, Esq., and Mary 
Hirst Pepperrell, were, 

1. Elizabeth^ born December 29, 1723. 

2. Andreifj, born January 4, 1726. 

3. William, born May 26, 1729, and died the following 
February. 

4. Margery, born September 4, 1732, who also died 
in infancy. 

The two surviving children of Mr. Pepperrell, Eliza- 
beth and Andrew, received the best education the 
province afforded. Their mother had been highly edu- 
cated in Boston, and was well qualified to direct their 
instruction. Elizabeth attended the best schools there, 
residing, much of her time, in the family of the Hirsts 
and the Sewalls, where Andrew also was a frequent 
inmate while fitting for college, which he entered at 
Cambridge, in 1741. Col. Pepperrell and lady passed 
much of their time in Boston, he in the General Court 
and in mercantile pursuits, and she with her children. 
The colonel had felt the need of learning very sensibly, 
and was determined that his only son and heir to 
his name and fortune, should enjoy all the advantages 
which it could confer. Naturally kind and affectionate, 
comely in person, graceful in manners, Andrew was the 
idol of his parents, and won the favor and esteem of a 
large circle of acquaintances among the elite of Boston. 
He graduated at Harvard at the age of nineteen, with 
distinguished honors. 

Elizabeth, having completed her education, returned 



40 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

home to requite, with filial duties and affection, the 
fostering care and solicitude of devoted parents. Few 
if any belles of her day possessed equal attractions. 
An heiress of rare accomplishments and winning 
manners, highbred maternal connections, and the 
only daughter of a distinguished merchant, high in 
official station, military, political, and judicial, and 
of commanding influence, and withal and above 
all, a lady of sound religious principles and abound- 
ing in Christian graces, she was truly " a gem of 
the first water." Many were the admirers that 
clustered around, ambitiously courting her benignant 
smiles. 

Among those who sought her favor, and the one 
whose assiduous attentions at length gained her affec- 
tions, was a young merchant named Sparhawk, son 
of a clergyman of Bristol, Rhode Island, who, dying 
early, left a -widow and two sons, John and Nathaniel. 
The widow married Jonathan Waldo, Esq., a wealthy 
merchant in Boston, who educated the two sons, John, 
who settled in the ministry at Salem, and left many 
descendants, and Nathaniel, who entered a commercial 
house as partner in trade with Benjamin Colman of 
Boston. Nathaniel Sparhawk and Miss Pepperrell 
were married May 1, 1742. Their permanent residence 
was in Kittery, near the Pepperrell mansion, where Mr. 
Sparhawk opened a mercantile house, whilst he still 
maintained his copartnerhip with Colman. As his 
father-in-law retired, or was obliged to absent himself 
to fill the public stations he held, Mr. Sparhawk gradu- 
ally succeeded him as will hereafter appear. 

Early in 1744, Andrew Pepperrell, the son of Sir 
William, became a copartner in trade with his father, 
who notified mercantile houses accordingly. 



CHAPTER III. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 

In 1744, a new scene opens in Pepperrell's life, in 
which the part he performed raised him to a high 
degree of fame, and inscribed his name on the endm*- 
ing page of history ; it was, the siege and captm*e 
of Louishnrg. 

England had been some years involved in war with 
Spain, and had gained important victories in which the 
blood of New England had been freely shed. It was 
feared that the reverses of Spain would drive her to the 
expedient of drawing France into the conflict as an 
ally ; and the fear proved to be well gromided. Early 
in October, 1743, the government schooner of Massa- 
chusetts arrived at Boston from England, via. New- 
foundland, bringing despatches to all the governors, 
inporting that in ten days after her departure war 
would be declared, and orders from the Admiralty 
to all naval commanders on the coast to prepare for 
hostilities. Immediately after. Col. Pepperrell received 
the following letter from Governor Shirley : — 

Boston, October 10, 1743. 
Sir, — Having received advices from Great Britain 
that there is great danger of a rupture with France, I 

4* 



42 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

think it necessary and accordingly direct you forthwith 
to advertise the exposed towns and settlements hereof, 
and to take proper care that the inhabitants secure 
themselves and families against any sudden assault 
from the Indians, and that they do not expose them- 
selves by being too far from home in this time of 
danger, and that the companies in your regiment 
that are not much exposed, be in readiness to relieve 
any of the neighboring places in case there should 
be any occasion for it. I am. Sir, 

Your friend and servant, 

W. Shirley. 

On the 13th, Pepperrell writes to all his captains a 
copy of the foregoing, and adds : — 

I hope that he who gave us our breath will give us 
the courage and prudence to behave ourselves like true- 
born Englishmen. 

Your friend and humble servant, 

W. Pepperrell. 

France declared war March 15, 1744, and England 
in two weeks after. The garrison at Louisburg took 
advantage of the prior declaration, and attacked Nova 
Scotia. A brief sketch of the relative positions of the 
two contending powers in America, at this time and 
previously, will assist in explaining their operations. 

Louisburg is situated at the south-eastern extremity 
of the Island of Cape Breton, at the entrance into the 
Gulf of St. Lawrence, the opposite side of the entrance 
being Newfoundland, thirty leagues distant. The two 
islands, thus relatively situated, seemed like two sen- 
tinels placed at the entrance into the Gulf and River 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 43 

St. Lawrence, which receive the waters of the great 
lakes. The Island of Cape Breton appears on a map 
like a continuation of Nova Scotia, being nearly of the 
same width, from thirty to sixty miles, and is separated 
from it by a narrow strait called Canso. The two 
together were called, by the French, Acadie, and by McUj^ij^ 
the English, Nova Scotia. They are separated from 
New Brunswick by the Bay of Fundy, which runs 
north-east from Cape Sable, until it almost meets Bale 
Verte, which makes in from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, 
an isthmus of ten miles being all that connects Nova 
Scotia with the main land of New Brunswick. The 
distance from Cape Sable, the western end of Nova 
Scotia, to the Strait of Canso is about two hundred 
and fifty miles, and from Canso to Louisburg, about 
one hundred miles. Nearly half way between Cape 
Sable and Canso, on the Atlantic shore, is the present 
city of Halifax. 

The English claimed, by right of discovery and 
possession, the Atlantic shores from Nova Scotia to 
Georgia, and the French claimed, by the same right, 
the Canadas, situated along the great chain of waters 
from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the great lakes. 
Already in possession of the Mississippi, they sought 
to connect it with the great chain of waters through 
the Ohio River to Pittsburgh, and to Erie on the Lake 
shore. But the Chickasaws had long opposed their 
progress up the Mississippi. In order to subdue them 
and open a free communication between Louisiana 
and Canada, a detachment of two hundred French and 
four hundred Indians was sent from Canada to Erie, 
and thence down the Ohio to meet a party from New 
Orleans. But the expected party from below failed 
to meet thetn at the time appointed. The Canadians, 



44 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

confident of success, attacked the Chickasaw towns 
single-handed. But three hundred Chickasaws in- 
stantly assembling, gave battle to the French in the 
field, and completely conquered them. Those who 
were not immediately killed, after being kept several 
days, almost perishing with hunger, in the wilder- 
ness, were tied to the stake, tortured, and burnt. 
Soon after this, M. Bienville with a larger army 
made a second expedition. Proceeding up the Missis- 
sippi, they encamped within fifteen miles of the Chick- 
asaw towns, and built a fort called Assumption, and 
receiving succors from Canada, they, in the following 
March, proposed terms of peace, which the Chickasaws 
'accepted, and granted free communication between 
Canada and Louisiana. 

But the Canadas were too remote from New Orleans 
to receive supplies from France by the way of the 
Mississippi, so that after all their only channel for 
conveying these was through the St. Lawrence. In 
entering this, they must pass Cape Breton on the left 
and Newfoundland, thirty leagues distant, on the right, 
and between these two sentinels all intercourse must 
pass between France and the Canadas, and the head- - 
waters of the Mississippi. 

The two rival nations thus relatively situated, could ■ 
hardly overestimate the value and importance of these 
islands, and especially of Cape Breton, to their respec- 
tive interests. Both nations were extensively engaged 
in the fisheries on the Grand Banks, within a few^ 
hours' sail of Louisburg. The fur trade, from the > 
extensive north-western regions, which was a leading > 
French interest, must pass through this channel, as ■ 
well as European supplies in return, for French and 
Indian Canadians. To the English, on the other hand^ 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 45 

the possession of Cape Breton was still more impor- 
tant. The English colonies were vastly more populous, 
and the colonial trade proportionably greater, and 
they, moreover, afforded supplies of ship timber for the 
British navy. In time of war, armed vessels fitted 
out from Louisburg, if in possession of the French, 
could intercept the whole trade between England and 
her colonies and destroy her fisheries, and if in posses- 
sion of England the latter could destroy the French 
Canadian trade and fisheries. Hence Nova Scotia, 
including Cape Breton, was a bone of contention from 
the earliest settlement, and was alternately possessed 
by one or the other nation, as success or defeat attended 
its arms elsewhere. 

At the treaty of Utrecht, Nova Scotia proper 
was ceded to Great Britain, while Cape Breton 
was retained by France, and from that time no pains 
nor expense was spared, by the French government, in 
building and strengthening its fortifications. They 
commenced building a walled town on a tongue of 
land at the south-east part of the island, which, in 
honor of their king, they called Louisburg. An accu- 
rate description of it is thus given by Belknap. It was 
two miles and a half in circumference, fortified in every 
accessible part, with a rampart of stone from thirty to 
thirty-six feet high, and a ditch eighty feet wide; a 
space of about two hundred yards was left without a 
rampart, on the side next to the sea, and inclosed by a 
simple dike and pickets. The sea was so shallow 
at this place that it made only a narrow channel, 
inaccessible, from its numerous reefs, to any shipping 
whatever. On an island at the entrance of the harbor, 
which was only four hundred yards wide, was a battery 
of thirty cannon, carrying twenty-eight pound shot. 



46 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

and at the bottom of the harbor, directly opposite to 
the entrance, was the grand or royal battery of twenty- 
eight forty-twos, and two eighteen pound cannon. On 
a high eminence opposite the island battery, stood the 
light-house, and at the north-east part of the harbor 
was a magazine for naval stores. The town was 
regularly laid out in squares. The streets were broad, 
and the houses built mostly of wood and stone. The 
entrance to the town was at the west gate over a draw- 
bridge, which was protected by a circular battery of 
thirteen twenty-four pound cannon. 

These works had been twenty-five years in building, 
and, though unfinished, had cost France not less than 
six millions of dollars. It was, in peace, a safe retreat 
for the French ships bound homeward from the East 
and West Indies, and in war, a place most favorable 
for privateers to seize fishing and coasting vessels, and 
British merchantmen. 

The French had early erected forts between Quebec 
and Lake Erie, and they now aimed to establish others 
between Erie and the Mississippi. But Virginia 
claimed the territory from the Atlantic westward to 
an unlimited extent, through which France was erect- 
ing these forts. It was attempted to enforce this claim 
by opposing the erection of French forts, as at Le 
Boeuf and Pittsburgh, in which attempt Washington 
commenced his military career, and Braddock was 
defeated and slain. 

Nova Scotia proper, then in possession of the Eng- 
lish, extended westward from the Strait of Canso 
to Cape Sable. There were two forts in it, garrisoned 
by two companies of English soldiers ; one at the 
mouth of the strait, on an island called Canso, and 
the other on the north side, in the Bay of Fundy, 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 47 

called Port Royal or Annapolis. Such is a brief 
sketch of the history and relative positions of the 
places that were now to become the field of military 
operations. 

The commander at Louisbm-g, on hearing that war 
was declared, immediately despatched an armed force 
of nine hundred men to Canso Island, and captured ~ 
the garrison, and conveyed the prisoners to Louisburg, -^ 
before news of the declaration of war had reached 
Boston. Another expedition was directed in like man- 
ner against the English fort at Annapolis. But Gov- 
ernor Shirley, in anticipation of hostilities, had sent a ^ 
reinforcement from Boston, which arrived in season to -. 
strengthen the garrison, and enable it to repel the 
assault. Both these expeditions were unauthorized by 
the French government, and were, in fact, a violation 
of positive orders to the contrary. But the prospect 
of victory seemed so certain that the commander at 
Louisburg could not resist the temptation to under- 
take them. 

The Indians of Nova Scotia assisted in these attacks, 
which led to an immediate declaration of war against 
them, and all other tribes near them. Colonel 
Pepperrell was sent, at the head of commis- 1744/ 
sioners, to the Penobscot tribe of Indians, to 
test their fidelity and friendship, and to request the 
Sagamores to furnish their quota of warriors, according 
to the terms of a former treaty. - His proposals were 
answered by a letter sent to Pepperrell after his return 
to Boston, stating that their young men would not 
fight against their brethren of St. Johns and New 
Brunswick. 

The colonies were now awakened to a sense of their 
danger. It was well known that France was making 



48 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPEERELL. 

formidable preparations for war, and that whatever was 
done for self-preservation must be done quickly. There 
.was not a moment to be lost. 

Through the autumn of 1744, it was a general topic 
of conversation in Boston, that Louisburg must be 
wrested from the French, in order to insure safety to 
trade and navigation, and even to the very existence of 
the colonies. The prisoners taken at Canso in the 
spring, and carried to Louisburg, had been exchanged, 
and returned to Boston in the autumn. From them an 
accurate account of the strength of the fortifications of 
Louisburg was obtained, from all which. Governor 
Shirley conceived the idea of taking the city by sur- 
prise, early in the spring, before any succors could 
arrive from France. Vaughn, of New Hampshire, a 
man of sanguine temperament and daring enterprise, 
assisted in collecting information, and urged forward 
the expedition. Some have said that he proposed 
marching into the city on snow-drifts! Governor 
Shirley wrote letters to the ministry, representing the 
probability of an attack, by the French, upon Nova 
Scotia early in the spring, and asking for some naval 
assistance, carefully concealing, however, the real scope 
and extent of his plans. He also wrote to Commodore 
Warren, on the West India station, to come with his 
squadron and cooperate. Orders were accordingly 
despatched, early in January, to Warren, to 
proceed to New England in the spring, and 
consult and cooperate with Governor Shirley in pro- 
tecting the fisheries. 

To obtain the opinion of the General Court on this 
subject, the governor, early in January, requested its 
members to take an oath of secresy respecting a propo- 
sition he was about to lay before them. This was 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 49 

something new in colonial legislation, but was com- 
plied with, and the plan of attacking Lonisburg was 
now submitted to their consideration. Secrecy was 
observed for some days, but the affair then accidentally 
leaked out. A pious old deacon, a member of the 
legislature, was so filled with the matter, that he was 
overheard at his private devotions, invoking heaven for 
its smiles on the enterprise. The boldness of the pro- 
posal at first astonished every one. It was referred 
to a committee, who reported against it, and thus 
the whole affair was supposed to have received its 
quietus. 

Bat the governor was not thus to be defeated. A 
few days after, he approached the legislature through a 
petition which he had the address to get signed by mer- 
chants in Boston and Salem, requesting a reconsidera- 
tion, and which was referred to another committee, who 
reported in its favor. After two days' discussion the 
question was taken, on the 26th of January, and the 
expedition was decided upon by a majority of a single 
vote in its favor, several members who were known to 
be opposed to it being absent. No sooner, however, 
was the decision made, than great unanimity prevailed 
in carrying it into effect, even among those who were 
before opposed to it. The people became enthusiastic, 
and confident of success. 

A variety of circumstances concurred to render the 
expedition feasible. Many fishermen, who had been 
thrown out of employment by the declaration of war, 
were ready to enlist as soldiers. The preceding season 
had been crowned with an abundant harvest, which 
made provisions plenty. The winter following was 
unusually mild, the rivers and harbors were open, and 
the inhabitants unmolested by savages. A concurrence 

5 



'■^ 



50 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

of happy incidents, as will presently appear, drew the 
whole naval force of England, employed to guard the., 
shores and islands of America, to Louisbm-g, whila. 
adverse circumstances to the French, prevented the< 
arrival of succors and supplies to the garrison, that^ 
were due from France, which created discontent and o. 
spirit of insubordination among the soldiers. A ship- 
of the line that was intended to bring supplies of pro- 
visions and munitions of war in the autumn, was 
broken in launching, and her place could not be sup-- 
plied in time to reach Louisburg until the British- 
squadron had blockaded the port, and was able to cap- 
ture all vessels bound thither. 

It was supposed that a force of fom* thousand men, 
with such a fleet as the provinces could raise, would be 
able to compel a surrender of the place ; and if it 
failed in this, it could at least recover Canso and fortify 
Annapolis in Nova Scotia, destroy the French fisheries, 
and lay waste all the settlements on the Island of Cape 
Breton, and probably capture many French merchant 
vessels. Circulars were addressed to the other prov-" 
inces of New England and the Middle States, but 
no one took any part in the expedition beyond New 
England. 

Each province, at that time, maintained one or more 
armed vessels. Massachusetts added to her number. 
Rhode Island sent her sloop of war with eighty seamen. 
New Hampshire and Connecticut followed their exam- 
ple. Edward Tyng, who commanded a small frigate 
of twenty-four guns, was made Commodore. The 
whole number of armed vessels was fourteen, and the 
number of guns in the provincial fleet was about two 
hundred and four ; the whole number of armed vessels 
and transports amounting to one hundred sail. The 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 51 

number of troops voted was, by Massachusetts, three 
thousand two hundred and fifty ; by Rhode Island, three 
hundred ; New Hampshire, three hundred ; and Connec- 
ticut, five hundred. 

A difficult task that now presented itself was, the 
appointment of a commander of the expedition. There 
were no experienced military officers in New England. 
A few had been engaged in skirmishes with Indians, 
but no man was to be found who had actually served 
in any siege or pitched battle. The choice fell on 
Colonel William Pepperrell. He was extensively 
known throughout New England, was largely engaged 
in the fisheries, a gentleman of engaging manners, 
very popular and wealthy, and had long held the 
highest office in the gift of the people, that of 
president of the governor's council. His patriotism 
now shone out with great lustre, for nothing but a zeal 
for his country's good could have carried him from the 
scenes of domestic enjoyment, and extensive and lucra- 
tive business, to the fatigues of a camp, and the risks 
of certain conflict, with doubtful result. 

He hesitated about accepting the appointment until 
Governor Shirley assured him that his influence was 
indispensable as commander. He then consulted his 
friends, and among others, the famous itinerant 
preacher, George Whitefield, who was then travelling 
through New "England, and lodged at his house. 
Whitefield told him he " did not think the scheme 
very promising; that the eyes of all would be upon 
him, — that if it should not succeed, the widows and 
orphans of the slain would reproach him, — and if it 
should succeed, many would regard him with envy, 
and endeavor to eclipse his glory, — that he ought, 
therefore, to go with a single eye, and he would find 



52 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

his strength proportioned to his necessity." He after- 
ward, by request, furnished a motto for the flag, which 
was, " Nil Desperandtwi, Christo Duce,^^ thereby giving 
the expedition the air of a crusade. It is said that 
a number of the followers of Whitefield enlisted ; and 
as a proof of the prevailing religious feeling, one of 
them, a clergyman, carried upon his shoulder a hatchet, - 
for the purpose of destroying the images in the French 
churches. 

Deacon John Gray, of Biddeford, writes to Pepperrell : 
" O that I could be with you and dear parson Moody in - 
that church, to destroy the images there set up, and. 
hear the true Gospel of our Lord and Saviour there, 
preached I My wife, who is ill and confined to her bed,, 
yet is so spirited in the affair, on hearing of your taking 
the command, that she is very willing all her sons 
should wait on you, though it is outwardly greatly to 
our damage. One of them has already enlisted, and I 
know not but there will be more. She sends her duty 
to you and says, so long as she has life she shall impor- 
tunately pray for you." 

Having decided to take the command, he entered on 
its duties, heart and hand, advanced five thousand 
pounds to the province from his own fortune, and 
brought every influence to bear upon the success of the 
enterprise. The appointment was judicious, for, though 
a merchant, he possessed much military spirit, and was., 
well fitted to command a militia composed of farmers,, 
mechanics, and fishermen. 

After his nomination. Governor Shirley, probably for 
the purpose of paying Governor Wentworth of New 
Hampshire an empty compliment, and perhaps enlist- 
ing him more heartily in the cause, addressed him a 
letter in which he says : " It would have been an 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 53 

infinite satisfaction to me, and done great honor to the 
expedition, if your limbs would have permitted you to 
take the chief command," undoubtedly supposing that 
the governor's gout would make such a proposition 
safe. But in this he was mistaken. - Wentworth flung 
away his crutches and offered his services, and Shirley 
had the mortification not only to make him an apology, 
but to tell him that any change in the command would 
hazard the expedition. 

That the rapid enlistment was owing to the popu- 
larity of Colonel Pepperrell, is evident from the fact 
that it was most marked in the towns nearest to him. 
Thus, Berwick, a contiguous town, and formerly a con- 
stituent part of Kittery, turned out almost in a mass. 
It contained only two militia companies of about fifty 
men each. Pepperrell, in a letter to his friend Hil], of 
Berwick, writes : — 

Yesterday I heard that Captain Butler had 
enlisted, in Berwick, nearly his fifty brave sol- ^^l?^^ 
diers. This news is like a cordial to me. Last 
night I received a letter from the war committee, say- 
ing they thought there was (upon our completing five 
or six companies of our brave county of York men) 
the full number proposed to be enlisted and more, so 
that there will be a number cleared off, but you may be 
assured that our brave county of York men shall not 
be cleared off, unless they desire it. I am sorry that 
some of your commissioned ofiicers of Berwick seem 
uneasy, because they had not been offered a commis- 
sion in this expedition. I understood that you spoke 
to them. Did they expect me at this time to wait on 
them ? If they were inclined to go, it was the duty 

5* 



54 



LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



they owed to God, their king and country, to come 
and offer their services.* 

Your affectionate friend, 

W. P. 

P. S. I have not the least doubt that the commis- 
sioned officers in Berwick are as brave and as good 
men as any in this province, and would willingly 
venture their lives with their colonel. Please to tell 
them all I sincerely value and love them, and that, 
should there be occasion for forces to be sent after us, I 
don't doubt in the least but they will be ready to come^ 
I beg all their prayers. 



During 



the enlistment great care was taken to 
prevent the enemy from hearing of the enterprise. 
No vessels were allowed to sail toward Louisburg 



* In a letter dated eight days previous to this, addressed to Major 
Hill, he says, " not one officer has appeared from Berwick to take 
beating orders, which I wonder at. If any of the officers there 
incline to go on the intended expedition, give them the offer, begin- 
ning with the captains ; let them be with me to-morrow." 

Williamson. — The militia of Maine in 1 744 : — 



PepperrelVs Regiment. 
In Kittery, .... 450 men. 

Ill York, 350 " 

In Wells, 250 " 

In Arundel, . . . . 95 " 

In Biddeford and Saco, . 120 " 

In Berwick, . . . . 150 " 

In Phillipstown, . . .150 " 

1,565 



Waldo's Regiment. 

In Scarborough, . . . 160 men. 

In Falmouth, Portland, . 500 -^ " 

In North Yarmouth, . . 150 » 

In Brunswick, . . . 50 " 

In Narragansett, No. 1, . 20 " 

In New Marblehead, . . 40 " 

In Georges and Broadbery, 270 " 

In Pemaquid,. .... 50 " 

In Sheepscot, .... 50 " 



1,290 



Whole number in both Regiments, 2,855 men. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 55 

from any of the colonies, to carry supplies or even 
intelligence. The proclamation of the governor to 
enlist from the trainbands was accompanied with an 
injunction of secrecy. The orders to captains were, to 
read the proclamation to the company at their muster, 
and then return it to the sheriff, who was to send it to 
the governor and council, and not allow any copies to 
be taken. 

The orders of Governor Shirley to the commander- 
in-chief. Lieutenant- General Pepperrell, (such was his 
present rank,) were, to proceed with his one hundred 
armed vessels and store ships, to Canso, there build a 
battery and block-house, deposit his stores, and leave - 
two companies to guard them, thence to sail with the 
fleet and army to Cabarus Bay, within three miles of 
Louisburg, to arrive in the evening, to anchor under 
covert of the darkness, forthwith to land his men, and 
commence an attack without delay, — a most quixotic 
scheme. A hundred sail of various sizes were to arrive 
there at a precise hour ; the weather and winds, even 
in the spring months, were all to be favorable; the 
rocky ridges pointing the shores, and the ice and fog 
which environed the island at this season were to be 
avoided, a certain harbor to be made under the shadows 
of nightfall, in an unexplored bay, and in a particular 
manner ; a landing to be effected there immediately 
amidst a heavy surf, and then the soldiery to take up a 
march, in the dark, through a ravine, bog, and woods, 
and after travelling three miles from the place of land- 
ing, to commence pulling down pickets with grappling- 
irons, and mount walls thirty feet high with scaling- 
ladders ; and all this in the space of one short night 1 1 

It was confidently expected by all who had embarked, 
that the West India fleet, under Commodore Warren, 



56 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

would accompany them, but on the day before they 
sailed, word was received from him declining to engage. 
This had no influence on Pepperrell, and it was kept 
an entire secret between Shirley, General Wolcott, and 
himself. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 57 



CHAPTER IV. 

[Within eight weeks the provincial forces were 
raised, and the entire preparations completed, the 
whole number of troops being four thousand three 
hundred. The only aid from provinces out of New 
England was, the loan of ten eight-pound cannon by 
New York, and some contributions of provisions and 
clothing by New Jersey and Pennsylvania.^ Some of 
the armed vessels sailed so early as the middle of 
March, to cruise before Louisburg, and cut off any of 
the enemy's ships that should attempt to enter that 
port. The rest of the fleet and transports collected at 
Nantasket Roads. A day of fasting and prayer 
throughout the province was appointed, to invoke 
the blessing of heaven upon the expedition, and 
an evening for special prayer was set apart weekly 
by many of the churches of New England. 

The Massachusetts troops sailed on the 24th of 
March, harbored three days at Sheepscot, and arrived 
at Canso, the place of general rendezvous, on the 1st 
of April. The New Hampshire troops had arrived a 
few days previous, and those from Connecticut came 
some ten days after. While lying in Canso, waiting 
for the ice to clear, the armed vessels captured a Marti- 
nique vessel bound for Louisburg, laden with rum 
and molasses. Soldiers were detached for making the 
assault on Louisburg, and some were employed in 



58 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

making cartridges, and others in erecting a block -house 
for the defence of the place and for the reception of 
sick and wounded. Skirmishes occurred on land, and 
a few French and Indians were taken prisoners, from 
whom information respecting Louisburg was obtained. • 
On the 22d of April, the Eltham, a mast ship of forty 
guns, arrived from the Pascataqua, and on the follow- 
ing day three large ships appeared in the offing, which,' 
to the great joy of all, proved to be the squadron of 
Commodore Warren. This was unexpected to Pep- 
perrell, who had learned, on the day of sailing from 
Boston, as before remarked, that Warren declined com- 
ing as requested by Shirley. But it seems that on the 
day following the date of his letter, he received orders 
from England to proceed and cooperate with Shirley 
in protecting the fisheries. Learning from a vessel on 
his way, that the army had sailed, Warren shaped his 
course for Canso instead of Boston. 

Pepperrell received a note from him, offering to pro- 
ceed and blockade Louisburg, to which he returned 
the following answer by Colonel Bradstreet : — 

Canso, April 23, 1745. 

Commodore Warren, 

Dear Sir, — I heartily congratulate you on your safe 
arrival with your squadron, the advice of which, by 
your favor of this day, gives me abundant pleasure. I 
am confident that nothing which the strictest vigilance 
and prudence can foresee or bravery execute will be 
wanting on your part, and doubt not you will succeed 
in preventing the introduction of provisions and suc- 
cors into Louisburg, and that we shall soon have the 
pleasure of a meeting there. 

W. P. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 59 

On his way, and before he reached Canso, Warren 
notified Governor Shirley of his orders from England, 
to assist in the expedition, and sent him a packet from 
London, the contents of which, Shirley notices in the 
following letter to Pepperrell : — 

Boston, April 22, 1745. 

Sir, — Since my last I received a pacquet from Com- 
modore Warren, dated on board the Superbe, fifteen 
leagues to the eastward of Cape Sables, in his passage 
to Canso, with the Launceston and Mermaid in com- 
pany, in order to join yon in the expedition ; and I hope 
he is arrived with you before now. Inclos'd in the 
commodore's pacquet I receiv'd his Majesty's orders 
to me respecting the attacking of the enemy's settle- 
ments, a copy of which I send you, whereby you will 
perceive how well disposed the ministry is toward our 
present enterprise, notwithstanding they were not par- 
ticularly appris'd that this expedition would be set on 
foot from hence. And.it gives us the utmost reason to 
hope that his Majesty will be pleas'd to support us 
from England upon the arrival of my letters there, giv- 
ing an account of the expedition in the manner we 
desir'd, which must be an infinite satisfaction to the 
army. You will perceive, also, upon your perusal of 
his Majesty's orders to me, that in any attempt against 
the enemy's settlements, he has plainly given Captain 
Warren the command of the shipping, or naval force, 
with which I am ordered to assist him ; hence, in gen- 
eral, upon any expedition, which you are sensible must 
supersede any commission from me, as to any sea arma- 
ment; and doubtless Commodore Warren will expect 
and insist upon the arm'd vessels with which, since my 
receiving his Majesty's orders, I am assisting him, in 



60 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

obedience to the royal commands, the command of 
those ships, and I doubt not. Sir, from the extraordinary 
conduct and vigilance with which you have hitherto 
acted for his Majesty's service, that you will instantly 
give orders to Tyng and the other cruisers to follow the 
commodore's directions and orders to them, the omit- 
ting of which may create a most unhappy disagreement 
and variance between you and Mr. Warren, which may 
prove fatal to the service. Had I not receiv'd these 
precise orders from his Majesty, which so evidently give 
Mr. Warren a general command at sea, in all expedi- 
tions from hence, I should have insisted upon my com- 
mand given you over the sea forces (which, as it is, is 
only suspended during Captain Warren's presence, and 
would revive upon his going off) against every person 
whatsoever ; and you must be sensible that this is not a 
preference given to him by me, but only acting in obe- 
dience to his Majesty's orders. Mr. Warren has left 
orders for his Majesty's ships that shall arrive here, to 
follow him, sorne of which I expect daily ; and he has 
also sent orders for the Newfoundland ships to join 
him ; so that I hope in God we shall have a strong 
armament with you soon, sufficient to enter the harbor. 
The Connecticut forces, I hear, sail'd, with a fair wind, 
the middle of last w^eek. I received your pacquet from 
Canso by Fletcher's prize, which is safely arrived here. 
The contents of your own. Brigadier Waldo's, and 
Colonel Bradstreet's letters, give me the utmost satis- 
faction and pleasure in your good conduct, for which I 
hope your country will have reason to bless you, and 
the King and Great Britain to make their acknowl- 
edgments to you. Provisions for four thousand men 
for two months more, will be sent to you in three days. 
Commodore Warren's heart seems, by his letter, to be 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 61 

thoroughly set upon the reduction of this place. God 
grant you success. Whatever you do, keep up a constant 
frequent correspondence with him, and let y^ utmost 
harmony be preserv'd between you, as what must (under 
God) secure you success more than any thing. You have 
the entire affections, I understand from Mr. Waldo and 
Bradstreet, of the army, and their hearts entirely, 
together with the perfect esteem of, Sir, your faithful 
friend and servant, 

W. Shirley. 

This letter was truly flattering, and well adapted to 
inflame PeppeiTell's zeal in the enterprise. But it would 
reflect more honor on ShMey's candor and ingenuousness 
were there not evidence that he had previously expressed 
in a letter to Warren a preference for him to take the 
command, instead of Pepperrell. Furthermore, instead 
of being loudest in laudation of Pepperrell after the 
glorious victory was achieved, as the foregoing letter 
would seem to promise, he was, in all his future allu- 
sions to the conquest, particularly meagre and parsi- 
monious of praise, indicative of envy at his success and 
unbounded popularity. 

The ice that had environed the shore and detained 
them being removed, the whole army embarked at 
Canso on the 29th of April, intending to arrive in the 
evening. A small armed vessel was sent ahead, to 
frighten into port any guard-boats that might be on the 
look-out for an enemy's approach. The wind dying 
away prevented their reaching Cabarus Bay, the place 
of landing, until eight o'clock the following morning. 
This was the first intimation that the garrison at 
Louisbourg had of the intended invasion. They had 
discovered the ships of war some days before, but sup- 

6 



62 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

posed them to be privateers. The secrecy observed by 
the provincials proved to be judicious, as it enabled 
them to surprise the garrison ; which contributed more 
to success than any thing else, excepting the culpable 
neglect of the French to reconnoitre the island of Cape 
Breton, and to employ spies to watch the motions of 
their adversary. They little dreamed of the cloud that 
was gathering over them. Secure in their imagined 
strength, they were startled at the sight of a numerous 
fleet, and now, for the first time, knew that the enemy 
was upon them. Confusion and alarm paralyzed their 
energies. 

No sooner were the vessels anchored, than boats were 
hoisted out and filled with soldiers, eager for battle, and 
a detachment of them pulled for White Point, under 
cover of the armed vessels. An alarm was now sounded 
by the bells and cannon of the town. Captain More- 
pang sallied out with two companies to oppose the 
landing. Having drawn the enemy to White Point, 
the boats retreated a little, and being joined by another 
division aimed for another place, two miles further 
inland, where, under cover of two armed vessels, they 
effected a landing before the French could reach them. 
They rushed to meet the approaching enemy, and 
killed six of them, and captured others that were 
wounded, and among them Captain Morepang. . The 
remainder turned their backs and hastened to the city 
garrison, burning all the houses in their way. Half the 
army were landed that day, and the remainder, with 
provisions, the two following mornings. They marched 
toward the town, and encamped so near that the 
enemy's cannon reached them, and obliged them to 
pitch their tents further off. 

Pepperrell lost no time in commencing the siege. 




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SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURQ. 63 

The same afternoon, May 1st, he despatched Colonel 
Vaughn with four hundred men to the town to recon- 
noitre, who led his troops through the woods quite near 
to the garrison, and gave three cheers, and at nightfall 
marched circuitously around Green Hill, that overlooked 
the garrison, to the north-east part of the harbor. Here 
they set fire to ten or twelve buildings, including ware- 
houses,, containing naval stores and a large quantity of 
wine and brandy. The smoke, driven three fourths of a 
mile toward the grand or royal battery, frightened the 
enemy, who supposed the whole army was coming on 
them in that direction, and spiking the cannon, and 
throwing the powder into a well, they fled in boats to 
the town, nearly a mile distant. ^ 

The next morning, Vaughn, on his return to camp in 
company with thirteen rnen, not knowing of the panic 
he had occasioned, crept to the top of Green Hill, which 
overlooked the grand battery, for the purpose of learn- 
ing something of its situation and strength. He was 
surprised to see that the flag was gone, and that no 
smoke issued from the chimneys of the barracks. He 
hired one of his party, a Cape Cod Indian, to enter into 
the fort and open the gate. Vaughn then took posses- 
sion, and wrote to General Pepperrell : " I entered the. 
royal battery about nine o'clock, and am waiting for a 
reinforcement and a flag." v A red coat was however 
used as a temporary substitute, which a soldier car- 
ried in his teeth, and nailed to the top of the flag- 
stafl". The French soon discovered their mistake, and 
sent a hundred men in four boats to retake the battery. 
But Vaughn, with his small band, amidst the fire from 
the city, alone upon the open beach resisted their land- 
ing till he was reinforced, when the French, perceiving 
a detachment from Pepperrell approaching, retired and 



64 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

left the English in possession of the battery. This gal- 
lant exploit of Vaughn's little band materially weak- 
ened the means of resistance on the part of the French, 
and transferred to the English a powerful means of 
annoyance as enduring as the siege. The battery con- - 
tained twenty-eight forty-two pound cannon, two eigh- 
teen, besides two hundred and eighty shells and a large 
number of balls, and other munitions of war.- . 

The French fired briskly upon the battery during the - 
day (May 2d), with cannon and mortars, but did no 
damage. They began to secure the low wall at the 
south-east part of the town, by placing on it a plank 
work fifteen feet high, and placing a range of pickets, 
twenty feet high, outside of the wall, and a number of 
swivels on the top of it. 

Pepperrell writes to Warren from Cabarus Bay, May 
1st: " I find it very difficult landing here, by reason of 
the great surf. Landed about two thousand men 
yesterday ; hope to get on shore the remainder, with the 
stores and some of the artillery this day. As soon as 
the vessels are. unloaded I will take care to appoint 
some of the most suitable to cruise between us. Shall 
order a detachment to destroy the settlements eastward 
of us. The brig which has clothing for your men I 
have ordered to you immediately. As to a battery at 
Cabarus Bay, which you advise, I think we cannot 
spare cannon nor men for it at present, but shall order 
a sloop of force to protect the transports that may lay 
there. I design, in a few days, to despatch a vessel to 
Boston for provisions, of whose sailing you shall have 
timely notice. Shall give you information when we 
design an attack, that you may favor the same.- Yes- 
terday a party of about one hundred and fifty of the 
enemy made a sally from the garrison to annoy our 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 65 

landing, who were well received by those of our party 
who first landed. We killed seven or eight and 
wounded as many more that were taken prisoners 
without loss of any, and only one or two wounded. 
The enemy burnt the houses between the town and 
battery. Our troops are in fine spirits, and I hope soon 
to give them a time for a general push. I am much 
obliged to you for the ofter of wine. We are how 
marching through the woods in order to encamp." 

May 2d. — To Commodore Warren : " We are land- 
ing our stores. I have to give you the agreeable news 
that we have, this morning, taken possession of the 
Grand or Royal battery, which the enemy had deserted. 
A woman, taken in the grand battery, says the explo- 
sion of powder there yesterday, was a number of 
swivel guns fired into the air. Pray excuse my not 
being particular, being in the open air, destitute of all 
conveniences for writing." 

May 4th. — To Commodore Warren : " T agree with 
you that it will be of the utmost consequence to get 
possession of the island battery, which I propose to do 
after the battering cannon and mortars are ready to 
play on the town, shall be glad of the assistance of 
your boats and what men you can spare, and think it 
will be best for your ships to draw off from the mouth 
of the harbor leaving the boats and men to join ours. 
I imagine they will not apprehend an attack by boats 
and will draw their force chiefly into town, to repel our 
attack on the back of it, which I shall make a feint of 
doing. I congratulate you on the capture of the 
French armed ship, a privateer. I think it may be 
of service to arm some of your schooners with her 
guns." 

Councils of war were organized in the fleet and in 

6* 



66 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

the army, at whose meetings the commanders preside 
and communicated to each other, ahnost daily, the 
decisions of their respective boards, by letter, and fre- 
quently by person, in their reciprocal visits. 

The first battery erected by Pepperrell was one 
thousand five hundred and fifty yards from the north- 
west bastion, on Green Hill. The second was six hun- 
dred yards nearer, where mortars were brought to play 
upon the town, on the 5th of May. The other cannon 
at the Grand battery, which had been spiked, were by 
this time drilled and returning the brisk fire of the 
enemy. But it required fourteen days and nights to 
drag all the cannon and munitions of war, brought in 
the fleet, from the landing through the morass to the 
batteries, which were successively erected in the night 
season, the third one being within seven hundred yards 
of the city. The island batteries, as well as those of 
the city, were constantly in full play upon Pepperrell's 
batteries. 

On the 7th of May, Pepperrell and Warren sent a 
flag to demand a surrender of the fortress to the British 
army, which returned with an answer that their reply 
would be at the cannon's mouth. There was a suspen- 
sion of cannonading on both sides while the flag was in 
the city, but on its return, at 5 p. m., firing was renewed, 
and more briskly than ever, and a fourth fascine 
battery was commenced within two hundred and fifty 
yards of the west gate. It was now proposed, by 
Warren, to storm the island battery in the night, and 
for this purpose volunteers were raised from the army 
and transports. It was not a favorite project with the 
army, many of the war council deeming it too hazard- 
ous and desperate, though Pepperrell favored it. Prep- 
arations were, however, made three successive nights, 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 67 

May 8, 9, 10, to embark for the purpose, but fogs or 
boisterous winds prevented. A sortie was made from 
the city on the 8th, which the provincials repulsed. 

May 9. — " Advised unanimously that the town of 
Louisburg be attacked by storm this night with all the 
vigor possible." 

In the afternoon it was advised that " inasmuch as 
there appears a great dissatisfaction in many of the 
officers and soldiers at the designed attack of the town 
by storm this night, and as it may be attended with 
very ill consequences, if it should not be executed 
with the greatest vigor whenever attempted, the said 
attack of the town be deferred for the present, or until 
the cannon are all mounted and in full play, and the 
enemy more reduced by the siege." 

May 11. — "Advised that the battery began at the 
west part of the town be completed with all possible 
expedition, and eight twenty-two pound cannon be 
mounted there." 

To Governor Shirley, he writes a particular nar- 
rative of all that had transpired since his last, and 
his future purposes, and adds, " I have delivered 
Commodore Warren his inclosed packets." Referring 
to Shirley's letter of April 22d, he says : " What relates 
to that gentleman (Warren) is perfectly agreeable to 
me. I shall, on all occasions, be fond of the assistance 
and advice of that gentleman," etc., etc. " I had, be- 
fore the receipt of yours, directed Tyng, with the other 
armed vessels, to attend to the orders of the Commo- 
dore, and strictly obey them." 

" I make no doubt of his Majesty's entire approba- 
tion of your conduct in setting on foot the expedition, 
and will support it, but hope we shall succeed without 
his further assistance. I think it would be fruitless to 



68 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

send to Annapolis for any of their strength at a time 
when they may apprehend themselves in danger of a 
siege. Col. Moulton has joined us with the detach- 
ment sent to St. Peters, having destroyed that settle- 
ment and taken some plunder and prisoners, burnt four 
schooners and brought off one, with the loss of one 
killed and one wounded. The greatest part of the 
inhabitants escaped. Have also advice from Captain 
Donahew, returned from Bay Verte, in going up the 
Strait of Can so, he met with a party of Indians. Upon 
which Captains Jaques and Hannaford, with their 
companies going on shore, though contrary to orders, 
the former was killed and the other wounded. The 
Indians were beat off without other loss on our part. 
In the Bay Verte, he took two small vessels that 
were empty, the others were hauled up where he could 
not come at them. He burnt some houses and birch 
canoes, and returned. I find Cabarus Bay a fine 
harbor for the transports. We have determined to 
encamp regularly, near the north-east harbor, and 
throw up a battery there in which to mount the New 
York train of artillery, and some of the guns from the 
grand battery, to support and repair it, which may be 
done in such a manner that two hundred men may 
defend it against two thousand, and with that and the 
other proposed battery, to command the harbor against 
any thing that will attempt to get in ; and by posting 
two regiments to protect the batteries in the rear, we 
shall cut off all communication by land with the city. 
As it has been judged advisable not to storm the town 
at present, and as reinforcements are expected from 
France and from Canada that may find means to get 
in, we require one thousand more men and another 
large mortar. Shall send up fourteen transports for 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 69 

them, and at the same time send up the prisoners we 
have taken." 

May 12. — To Commodore Warren : " We are all 
much obliged to you for writing to the several govern- 
ments of the southern colonies for aid. We are com- 
pleting the battery on the west part of the town, hope 
it will be ready to play to-morrow. It gives me 
concern that you have reason to complain of your 
men's hurting themselves with liquor when on shore, 
as my positive orders have been to prohibit such 
practices. I will order strict inquiry to be made relat- 
ing to their arms, and if you should think proper to 
have them on shore -again to assist in any attack, 
I will endeavor effectually to hinder disorders of that 
kind." He applies for three or four gunners from the 
Commodore. 

May 13. — "I am now ordering out all the stores 
from eighteen transports, to send them for more 
recruits. I cannot presume to advise in regard to 
your squadron ; as to our cruisers, am glad to have 
them under your direction. Am much obliged to you 
for the gunners sent us." 

To Warren he writes : " I observe your news by the 
prize, of the arrival of French ships of war, and hope 
we shall be able to give them a welcome. I will send 
you three schooners as soon as their stores are landed, 
and despatch one to Newfoundland to carry your 
orders. The captain-general, Shirley, orders me 'to 
destroy the houses within two leagues of Louisburg.' " 

Same day. — "I have not a blue flag to use as a 
signal to you of all being well, but shall hoist a union 
flag, which please to answer with a Dutch flag at mast- 
head. I have given express orders to the masters of 
the transports not to hoist any flag. The unaccount- 



70 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

able behavior of these fellows and some marauders, is 
the greatest vexation I meet with ; hope to reduce them 
to better discipline soon. I now send you out a fifth 
schooner to attend you, the master of which. New- 
march, is acquainted with the harbors round the island; 
have also sent out three schooners to fish; shall, in a 
day or two, send a schooner to Canso and Boston 
with the prisoners. Thank you for the claret and 
lemons and repeated kind offers. We have had con- 
siderable success hitherto, having cleared three forty- 
twos at the grand battery, and have done some execu- 
tion, lodging several shot in the citadel; the mortars 
and some cohorns throw into the town in most in- 
stances." 

On the 13th a French snow or brig, from Bordeaux, 
succeeded in entering the harbor, the night being dark 
and stormy, and this was the only vessel, out of at 
least a dozen, that was able to elude the vigilance 
of the fleet during the siege, the others being all 
captured. The provincials took advantage of the 
same darkness and storm to send in a fire-ship, which 
exploded and did some damage to the shipping and 
city wall. 

May 15. — To Commodore Warren : " Am pleased 
to hear you have destroyed Nigonish and St. Anns, 
which must distress the enemy. Expect soon to have 
two batteries finished, one within two hundred and 
fifty yards of the west gate with four forty-two 
pounders and two eigh teens. We have had two 
of our twenty-two pounders burst, by which accident 
several of our men were wounded. One of your 
gunners has lost a leg. Have ordered a flag to be 
hoisted at the light-house, and shall, as soon as possi- 
ble, send Col. Brad street to throw up a battery there. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 71 

There was an attempt made from the grand battery, 
the night before last, to burn the snow which had no 
other effect than to alarm the town. The fire from the 
island and town batteries drove our men from their 
guns and killed one and wounded several." 

May 16. — " Has ordered diligent search for things 
his men lost on shore. Yesterda}^ we gave the west 
gate about one hundred shot from our fascine battery. 
The heavy cannon will be removed from the grand 
battery here to-night." 

In a long letter to Governor Wentworth on what 
he had done, he concludes by saying : " I hope 
that, under God, we shall soon be masters of this 
island, and that I shall have the pleasure of writing 
you from within the walls of Louisburg." 

On the 15th of May, the fourth fascine battery, called 
Titcomb's, was raised, and mounted with heavy guns, 
drawn from the grand battery, which did great execu- 
tion. Next day, thirty large cannon were found under 
water near the light-house, and a regiment was sent to 
raise and mount them on a battery, as soon as one could 
be constructed. The following night one hundred 
Frenchmen embarked in boats to attack the party, but 
were repulsed with the loss of one man on each side. 
On the night of the 18th, the new fascine battery was 
opened within two hundred and fifty yards of the west 
gate, which soon demolished it, and perforated the wall. 
Several were killed on the wall and in the battery by 
musketry; one man, venturing outside, received five 
wounds from a volley aimed at him from the wall. 
Even conversation was carried on between the opposing 
soldiers, and. on one occasion it lasted half an hour, the 
Provincial speaking in French and the Frenchman in 



72 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

English, and each inviting the other to breakfast and a 
glass of wine. 

To Governor Shirley he writes : " It is with the 
utmost pleasure I observe the reception which the news 
of this expedition has given to his Majesty and the 
ministry at home, and hope soon to give them intelli- 
gence of its favorable issue. The R. Island sloop of war 
has just taken a brig from France, laden with provisions 
for Louisburg, and informs us that four large ships 
and three of thirty guns each may be hourly expected here 
from France. Am just informed by Captain Rouse that 
a French ship of sixty-four guns was met yesterday by 
him and the Mermaid, and engaged her till dark, and that 
the Commodore approached at seven o'clock. I fear she 
escaped in the fog. As the enemy will hold out to the 
last, please to send us more cannon powder." 

On the 20th, Warren announces, by letter, his capture 
of the Vigilant, a sixty-four gun ship, having six hun- 
dred men, and laden with military stores, and requests 
aid in disposing of the prisoners among the transports ; 
to which Pepperrell, after congratulating him on his 
success, replies, " As we have already manned Rouse out 
of our transports, and there being not more than four 
men in each, they can be of no great security to pris- 
oners, unless they are put in irons, in which case some 
may be sent in the Rhode Island Snow and by Smith- 
hurst, which Governor Shirley orders hence to guard 
the coast of New England. The capture of the Vigi- 
lant produced a burst of joy in the army, and animated 
them with fresh courage to persevere." 

Same day he writes to Warren : " I shall send off four 
of the transports, to be improved by you for fire-ships, 
if you think proper. Shall order others fitted in the har- 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 73 

bor and every preparation made at the grand battery. 
We have continued our fire upon the west gate, but have 
split one of our forty-twos. I am desirous of a general 
consultation as soon as possible, in order to determine 
upon a speedy and vigorous attack with our united 
forces." Same day, he returns thanks to the war com- 
mittee for a plentiful supply of provisions, and particu- 
larly for refreshments for his own table ; refers them to 
the governor for account of progress, not having time to 
write, and calls for shoes and stockings and other cloth- 
ing for the men. 

[To Commodore Warren.] 

Camp, May 17, 1745. 

Sir, — Yours of yesterday's and this day's date I 
received, and observe the contents with grateful pleas- 
ure ; particularly I note your prudent and great thought- 
fulness to bring to a happy issue the affair before us, of 
so much consequence to our king and nation, and the 
northern colonies in particular. It is my great concern 
that our progress against our enemies on shore is so slow; 
but when the difficulties of attacking the island battery 
are duly considered, there being but critical moments in 
which it can possibly be done with hopes of success, 
also the difficulty of scaling walls without a breach by 
undisciplined troops ; of landing our cannon in so bad a 
harbor, of getting them convey'd on such bad grounds 
in the face of our enemy's fire, while we cannot annoy 
them at all, and a general illness through the army ; 
these and such like things considered, I hope your 
patience will not tire. The probability of the speedy 
arrival of a French sea force I duly consider, but I hope 
the best, and nothing in my power shall be wanting 
towards the greatest despatch and most vigorous attack . 

7 



74 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Your plan I have this day laid before my council. As 
the main part of the forces are engaged to get forward a 
number of the cannon at the grand battery, against the 
west gate, to be mounted by to-morrow morning if pos- 
sible, the good effects of which I hope soon to advise 
you of, a due consideration thereof is referred till to- 
morrow morning, ten o'clock. At present can only say 
that the attack of the island battery or town will, as I 
think, certainly and speedily be effected ; and I hope to 
good purpose. Your prudence and good conduct in the 
disposition of your ships I cannot question, my own 
judgment I cannot but mistrust, yet am doubtful 
whether your ships going all, or most of them into 
Cabarus Bay, as you propose, will be of good conse- 
quence. In dark and foggy weather your cruisers may 
at sea meet with the king's enemies to our advantage, 
but the weather that will be good to carry them into 
Louisburg, will keep your vessels in that bay, however 
early your notice of their approach. Excuse my free- 
dom, shall myself or some of my council wait upon you 
to-morrow, and I hope to be able to settle the needful 
points. Yours, etc., 

W. P. 

[To Commodore Warren.] 

Camp, May 20, 1745. 

Sir, — Yours of yesterday I received this morning, 
and immediately ordered Saunders to send off four of 
the transports with wood and water, two of which, or 
all of them to be improved for fire-ships, if you think 
proper. I observe the information you have of a 
French fleet, and have just received a letter from Capt. 
Rouse giving account of your having met a large 
French ship, whose fate I impatiently wait to hear of. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 75 

as it is probable she is one of that fleet, — imagine 
that if she has escaped you, she will endeavor to join 
the others, which I hope will fall into your hands. I 
shall order some vessels to be fitted for fire-ships in the 
harbor forthwith, and all the preparation possible to be 
made at the Royal battery. We have, since my last, 
continued our fire on the enemy from the west gate 
battery, which has shattered the wall considerably, but 
we were so unfortunate last night as to split one of the 
forty-two pounders. I am desirous of a general con- 
sultation as soon as possible, in order to determine 
a speedy and vigorous attack with our united force. 
Our men sicken apace, great numbers are now unfit for 
service. Yours, etc., 

W. P. 

[To Governor Shirley.] 

Camp before Louishurg, May 20. 

Inclosed herewith is a copy of my last by Captain 
Bennet who sailed on the 12th instant. We have 
to inform you that notwithstanding the incredible 
difficulty in transporting the artillery, etc., over bogs, 
morasses, and rocky hills, we have, by indefatigable 
industry, got our train of twenty-two pounders mounted 
at a battery on the west of the town some days since, 
from which, with the cohorns and mortars, we annoy 
the enemy considerably. But those cannon prove 
very bad, two of them are burst, and two others broken 
by the enemy's shot. We have also, two nights since, 
with the utmost difficulty, thrown up a fascine battery 
within two hundred and fifty yards of the west gate, 
and planted in it two forty-twos and two eighteens 
from the Royal battery, which have beat down the 
drawbridge with part of the west gate and some of 



76 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

the adjoining wall. We have since, split one of the 
forty-twos, and the enemy are using their utmost to 
drive us from that battery. The want of gunners 
occasions us great difficulty, two of which are killed 
and a third has lost a leg. I have employed all I can 
find capable of that service, and have promised them 
liberal rewards in case of their good behavior. Capt. 
Gay ton is not arrived. We shall soon want the 
powder he has for us, and must pray your care for a 
further supply as soon as possible, in order to our mak- 
ing progress against the enemy, especially as the forty- 
twos, on which we depend, consume immense quanti- 
ties, our twenty-twos proving bad, and the New York 
train not yet arrived. 

Captain Rouse arrived here with all the supplies 
you sent under his convoy, which is very animating to 
the army. Commodore Warren daily expects four 
men-of-war from Newfoundland. Two of his ships 
have taken a large vessel laden with provisions and 
stores for this place, and twenty-seven men. We learn 
from her that four ships of war and two frigates are at 
Brest, said to be destined for Louisburg. He has 
sent and burnt forty houses at St. Anns and Nigonish, 
and as many vessels. 

A French snow got into Louisburg with provisions. 
She approached in the fog unseen, and in spite of our 
cannon, anchored under the walls, the town and island 
batteries firing furiously at the time on the grand 
battery. We have discovered thirty cannon in the east 
harbor, at low-water-mark, which will be mounted 
there as soon as possible. Have hoisted an English 
flag at the light-house, and posted a regiment there 
and guard-boats to intercept supplies from entering 
town by night. A party of about one hundred men 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 77 

crossed over from the town to cut off the guard posted 
at the light-house, but were repulsed with the loss of 
one of their soldiers wounded. The general expresses 
regret that he has made no further progress, " which is 
partly attributable to undisciplined troops and sickness 
among them," adding, " I design to consult Commodore 
Warren as soon as possible on measures for a steady 
and vigorous push." 

May 24. — Warren sends to Pepperrell the opinion 
of his navy council respecting a bold attack upon the 
town. " That all his Majesty's ships and all the colony 
cruisers, except two, with the schooners and transports, 
go into the harbor and attack the town and batteries 
with the utmost rigor, with his Majesty's ships, in such 
order of battle as shall be agreed on, and that all the 
unarmed vessels anchor in the north-east harbor, out of 
gunshot ; taking the boats of his Majesty's ships and 
colony cruisers, excepting one yawl to each, under their 
care, to prevent their being shot to pieces by the enemy, 
and to be ready upon a signal made by me to bring 
them and all the whale-boats and others, with all the 
men in every vessel armed, on board his Majesty's 
ships, and colony cruisers, on the off side from the 
enemy, in order to land them, if necessary, or to go on 
any other service ; and the better to enable the ships 
of war to execute this service, we think the general 
should send on board of his Majesty's ships, one thou- 
sand six hundred men, six hundred of them to be put 
on board the Vigilant, the remaining thousand to be 
distributed into the rest of the ships of war, as shall 
be thought proper, by the commander of his Majesty's 
ships;" that the marines be landed under the com- 
mand of Col. McDonald to head the first attack, " not 

7* 



78 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

doubting of his being effectually sustained by your 
men, and that the said troops approach as near as Col. 
McDonald shall judge proper, in order to attack when 
the commodore makes a signal." 

This plan, the reader will perceive, was calculated if 
not intended to secure to Warren the supreme com- 
mand of both land and naval forces, and to leave Pep- 
perrell a mere cypher. 

May 26. — Pepperrell writes to Warren : " Yours of 
24th I received yesterday with the plan of operation 
proposed by yourself and council, for attacking Louis- 
burg, and now inclose the determination of my 
council. Our batteries continue to shatter the wall 
near the west gate and near the circular battery, — am 
in hopes to dismount the cannon which may most 
annoy the entry of the ships, by the time the Vigilant 
is ready to join you. I have not given up hopes 
of attacking the island battery as soon as the sea will 
permit. I flatter myself you will think the inclosed 
reasons of my council for the landsmen not coming on 
board your ships are of weight. The sea forces and 
transports are entirely at your disposal. Have ordered 
carpenters to assist in fitting the Vigilant, and assist- 
ance to secure the prisoners. Opportunity to consult 
with you is precarious. I wish if possible we may 
unite our councils on some plan for a speedy attack 
upon the town as soon as your ships can be got ready 
therefor. We have many men sick from fatigue and 
hardships. As French and Indians are expected, I 
.have ordered out scouts to make discoveries." 

The objections of Pepperrell's council to Warren's 
plans are, that "the Indians might come in upon our 
backs, while the troops are on board, and attack what 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 79 

forces remain in the camp and the hospitals ; that the 
army is greatly reduced by sickness and unfitted to 
land from the fleet, and that if the advance ship Vigi- 
lant, that is to be manned with them, should miscarry, 
the whole enterprise would fail and be disastrous to the 
colonies. They therefore propose, in lieu of this plan, 
that a general attack be made upon the town by the 
land and naval forces forthwith, and to this end, that 
five hundred men be impressed from the cruisers and 
transports, to embark in the Vigilant, and that the 
other large ships follow her into the harbor under the 
commodore's directions, — that five hundred men put 
off" in boats from the grand battery at a given signal, to 
land and escalade the walls in front of the town, under 
fire of the fleet and batteries, the marines and sailors of 
the fleet to join them, — that five hundred more 
escalade the walls at the south-east part of the town, 
— that five hundred more make a breach at the western 
gate, and five hundred more be in readiness to support 
the party that most needs them." This plan of Pep- 
perrell's council was not sent by reason of a dense fog 
until the following letter was received from him the 
next day : — 

[Copy of "Warren's letter to Pepperrell.] 

Suburbs ofLouisburg, May 26, 1745. 

Sir, — I am sorry to be troublesome to you, but his 
Majesty's service requires it. 

I informed you how much it would be for the advan- 
tage of the present expedition to get the Vigilant, who 
is of greater force than any ship here, manned and 
fitted for sea at a time we may daily expect our enemy 
with a very strong squadron. 'T is impossible for us to 
man her out of our own ships, without weakening all 



80 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

the squadron and rendering them unfit to make any 
figure (but a bad one) against the enemy. 

I therefore applied to you for men, but none are yet 
gone on board her. There are, no doubt, a number of 
seamen among the troops and transports, that would 
readily go on board her upon my promise, which I 
solemnly give, to discharge them on our return to 
Boston when the expedition is over, and I believe such 
a number as she will want, will contribute more to the 
success of the expedition in her, than in any other 
shape they can be employed. 

What shall we do with all our prisoners ? it is very 
improper to keep them all in our ships. We that have 
been, now almost three months at sea, grow very 
sickly for want of refreshments. If we could get fish 
for our people it would be some service to them. 

I have not been favored with your answer to the 
plan of operations I sent you ; for God's sake let us do 
something, and not waste our time in indolence. 

If you will order men on board the Vigilant, she will 
be very soon fit for service. 

Pray how came the island battery not to be 
attacked ? please to let me know. I sincerely wish you 
all the honor and success imaginable, and only beg to 
know in what manner I can be more serviceable than 
in cruising to prevent the introduction of succors to 
the garrison. I fear that if that be all that is expected 
from the ships, or that they can do, Louisburg will be 
safe for some time. For my part I have proposed all 
that I think can be done, and only wait an answer 
thereto. 

Your most obedient servant, 

P. Warren. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 81 

May 27. — The council having taken into considera- 
tion the answer made by Commodore "Warren to the 
plan of operations proposed by them yesterday, advise 
that the general embrace the first opportunity to go on 
board Commodore "Warren's ship, with such of his 
council as he shall think proper to take with him, and 
endeavor to determine upon some measures to be taken 
for the reduction of Louisburg ; to be put in execution 
accordingly, without further debate. 

From casual remarks dropped by prisoners, the com- 
modore learned that a large number of the enemy's war- 
ships would soon arrive. This intelligence added to 
sickness among his crews, and their need of fresh 
provisions, made him impatient to press the siege with 
more vigor, and to storm the fortress. The island 
battery was in the way of his ships, which he again 
strenuously urged Pepperrell to take by storm in the 
night. The provincial council of war were less san- 
guine of the success of so hazardous an enterprise, 
where the surf was running, by raw troops and inexpe- 
rienced sailors, and it was hard to bring a majority 
of them to acquiesce in the measure. Pepperrell, how- 
ever, favored Warren's earnest solicitation, and offered 
inducements to volunteers, which were soon raised, 
mostly among his troops. Captain Brooks, with four 
hundred men, led the party from Cabarus Bay in the 
night, with scaling ladders, but was repulsed with the 
loss of sixty killed and one hundred and twelve made 
prisoners, including the wounded. The surf running 
high, many of their firelocks were wet in landing, and 
the boats were fired upon with langrage before they 
could reach shore, which put them in great disorder, 
and kept back many that should have pressed forward. 
Those that did reach the shore were dispirited, and 



82 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

after firing an hour, part of them surrendered, and the 
others retreated to the camp. This was the only 
serious reverse encountered during the siege. It sad- 
dened the hearts of the army, the more so when the 
exulting cheers of the enemy were, next morning, 
wafted to their ears, reverberating from hill to hill. 

May 28. — To Commodore Warren : " In answer to 
yours of the 26th, I beg leave to represent that it is 
now the twenty-ninth day since the army invested 
Louisbursr and drove in the inhabitants. That we 
have erected five fascine batteries and with hard service 
to the men, have drawn our cannon and mounted them, 
have distressed the inhabitants, made some breaches in 
the wall, and doubt not we shall soon reduce the circu- 
lar battery. That in this time we have made five 
unsuccessful attempts upon the island battery, in the 
last of which we lost one hundred and eighty-nine men 
and many of our boats. That we have kept out scouts 
to destroy the enemy's settlements, and prevent surprise. 
That fatigue has brought on disease, and left us not 
more than two thousand one hundred men fit for duty, 
six hundred of whom are gone in pursuit of two large 
bodies of French and Indians, eastward and westward 
of us. The council decide that another attack on the 
island is impracticable. We continue our best exer- 
tions against the enemy, and I shall, as soon as possi- 
ble, visit you with some of my council to determine on 
the most suitable measures to adopt. Please to stand 
in toward Cabarus Bay as soon as suits you, and to 
order out vessels to fish for your crews. We think it 
best to send a vessel to Annapolis for a mortar and war- 
like stores." 

Again, May 31. — "I went on board a schooner with 
some of my council and was out four hours trying to 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 83 

reach you, but was prevented by fogs ; shall try again 
when the fog clears away, in order that we may do 
something effectual in the enterprise we have so much 
at heart." 

June 1. — Writes to Captain Montague of the Vigi- 
lant, asking of him fifty barrels of powder and five 
hundred cannon balls, till stores arrive from Boston. 

To -Commodore Warren : " Yours of yesterday I 
received this morning. Am extremely sorry the fogs 
prevented me from waiting on you on board your 
ship. But since it so happened, I have advised 
further with my council upon the contents of your 
letter and plans, and we conclude forthwith to furnish 
you with six hundred men for the Vigilant, which we 
propose to take from the transports and landmen, — 
have determined also to send off to your ships at least 
five hundred men with their officers, the morning you 
design to go into the harbor with your ships, to be 
landed on the front of the town with your seamen. 
Am very much obliged to Col. McDonald for the readi- 
ness he expresses of assisting with his marines on 
shore, and if an equal number of men more than the 
forementioned one thousand one hundred can be found 
that are likely to be serviceable on board your ships 
during the marines' absence, I will gladly send them in 
their stead. I shall exert myself that all the necessary 
preparations be made on shore for the attack whilst the 
Vigilant is getting ready. The battery near the light- 
house Col. Gorham informs me, is almost completed, 
that there are three embrasures facing the island battery, 
and six facing the sea, — shall have several carriages 
finished and the guns mounted in two days. He 
informs me he has two shallops lying outside the 
light-house, in order to take out Bosch's guns, which I 



84 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

shall order to be done as soon as possible. I am sure 
that your plan for the shipping going in is concerted in 
the best manner, but if the men be taken out of the 
transports for the Vigilant, they cannot go in with their 
ships. You condescend much in asking my opinion 
what vessels had best go to Annapolis, but if we can 
speedily execute our attack on Louisburg, I hope it will 
be timely enough to send, after that is over. Our 
batteries continue to make good progress against the 
enemy's wall. We aim as much as possible against 
the circular battery, but owing to the fog we cannot 
play as briskly as we would be glad to do. We are 
short of ammunition and must borrow fifty barrels 
more, and some shot from the Vigilant. Our scouts 
have routed many and killed some and taken some 
prisoners. I shall endeavor to visit you if fog will 
permit, this day." 

June 2. — To Captain Douglas of the Vigilant : " I 
thank you for the powder sent, am expecting a 
supply hourly from Boston. I have determined to 
supply six hundred men for manning the Vigilant, 
which shall send off to you as soon as possible. Am 
very much obliged to you for your kind present. Hope 
to see you on board Commodore Warren this day, 
whom I shall visit to determine upon measures for the 
speedy prosecution of our design against Louisburg." 

To Governor Mascareene of Annapolis : Narrates 
briefly the encouraging progress made against Louis- 
burg, and asks for a large mortar and shells, and 
also for a skilful gunner. At the same time to Mr. 
Bastide the engineer at Annapolis, for him to send Mr. 
Cowly. Hopes soon to be within the walls. Writes 
to Mr. Cowly to the same import. 

To Governor Shirley : " Powder and balls are 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 85 

nearly used up, on account of which many of our 
guns are silent. Have borrowed one hundred and 
eighty-seven barrels of powder from Commodore War- 
ren. We have raised from the water six of the enemy's 
eighteen pounders, but are in want of pow^der and balls 
for thp,m. Our large mortar is burst and also another 
forty-two pounder in the advance battery. I beg for 
the large mortar at the castle, with a good bed for 
it. The shells sent with the former mortar would not 
last twenty-four hours, and not a quarter enough 
powder came. The enemy appears determined to 
defend the town to the last extremity, and you may 
depend we shall as vigorously push on our part. Our 
attack upon the island battery proved disastrous, since 
which, the fire upon our advance battery has been 
furious. We keep a large detachment near to prevent 
a sally from the west gate. The advanced battery, 
though within two hundred and fifty yards, would ere 
this have been covered by one still nearer, but for lack 
of gunners and ammunition. We have selected troops 
to serve in the Vigilant and other ships. Several addi- 
tional ships have arrived from Newfoundland and other 
places, and the enemy are expecting a large one with 
three store-ships. Our land forces are inferior to those 
of the enemy, who greatly overestimate our numbers. 
We have one thousand five hundred sick, and a rein- 
forcement, therefore, of three thousand men is absolutely 
necessary. There are two French ships of twenty-six 
and thirty guns between this and Cape Sable, but we 
cannot spare ships from the blockade squadron to 
pursue them. Our scouts have encountered large 
bodies of the enemy, and killed and wounded about 
forty of them, with the loss on our part of four killed! 
and thirty wounded. 

8 



86 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

" "We have been prevented by fog four days from 
having any interview with the commodore and plan- 
ning an attack. We must have more reinforcements 
from the colonies, who had inadequate ideas of the 
enemy's strength. If it be possible to settle with 
Warren a general attack, it will be done, but should 
the event bear heavily on the land forces, we shall only 
be able to act the defensive part for a while, under 
cover of the ships. Whether Col. McDonald will 
come on shore to join our forces, or enter the town by 
boats from the men-of-war is not yet settled. You ask 
for some of the cruisers to protect the coast, but they 
cannot conveniently be spared at present." 

Again, June 3. — " Have just received yours ; am 
rejoiced to learn that my services are approved. 
I thank you for timely supplies just received. It is 
reported here that Duvivier's arrival is expected with 
two thousand men from France. The zeal and activity 
of Colonel Bradstreet, are worthy of all praise. It is 
difficult keeping our counsels secret, (to which the gov- 
ernor had alluded,) and I recommend that you forbid 
the printing of them." 

June 4. — To Commodore Warren, congratulating 
him on his intercepting a vessel loaded with provisions 
from Quebec; hopes their incredulity there, as to an 
armament against Louisburg, will continue a while 
longer. Requests him to hasten the provisions to 
Canso where they are short. 

June 5. — To Governor Shirley: " I have just had a 
conference with Commodore Warren on board his ship, 
who is not inclined after all, to attempt sending his 
ships into the harbor, till further execution is done 
against the enemy's batteries. We therefore, propose 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 87 

to withdraw the six hundred men from the Vigilant, 
and to man her from Snelling and the two Rhode 
Island vessels, leaving forty on board to take them to 
Boston. Mr. Bastide, engineer from Annapolis, has 
arrived to assist ; — reports that the French and Indians 
drew off from there on the 24th ult, being called away 
by an express from Louisburg. 

" Last night a French soldier deserted from the garri- 
son to us and reports that there are three thousand six 
hundred men that bear arms, seven or eight hundred 
of which are soldiers ; that they have provisions to last 
till October, and considerable ammunition ; that one 
hundred and sixteen of our men were taken prisoners 
at the attack on the island battery ; that the enemy 
judged variously of our forces, from one thousand to 
four thousand five hvmdred men ; that they have burst 
one of their mortars and several cannon ; that they are 
prepared to receive an attack every night on all parts of 
the town ; that the guards prevent deserters ; that if 
their expected ships are taken, they will have to sur- 
render, but they do not expect our ships will venture 
into the harbor; that more ships and soldiers would 
have been sent from France last fall had not the 
engineer who went out represented that women were 
able to defend the place by land. I have sent him to 
Commodore Warren. Have ordered fourteen trans- 
ports back to Boston, and Bosch with prisoners. Our 
scouts are successful, one has just brought in seventeen 
prisoners." 

To Commodore Warren : " I send you a French 
soldier deserted from the garrison. My council agree 
that an express should be sent to the Duke of New- 
castle if you think it best. Have ordered a cruiser to 



88 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

the mouth of the harbor to intercept supplies ; -^ as this 
weakens our land force, hope you will send the Rhode 
Island or Connecticut schooner on that duty." 

To the Honorable Committee of War. Thanks them 
for timely supplies, and offers his pressing duties on all 
sides as an excuse for not writing more ; refers them to 
his letters to Governor Shirley ; asks for further sup- 
plies for the soldiers and a sloop load of boards. 

June 6. — To Commodore Warren, to send a cruiser 
to convey troops from Annapolis, now that the French 
and Indians have raised the siege there. 

Warren's fleet had, by this time, more than 
""^ ' doubled by arrivals of large ships from the 
West Indies, Newfoundland, and from England, the 
appearance of which, added to the impression made by 
Pepperrell's batteries on the fortress and town, and the 
long and wearisome bombardment of nearly six weeks, 
awakened some alarm among the French as to the 
issue of the contest, which was increased by intelligence 
sent in by a flag of truce of the capture of the Vigilant, 
of which they were still ignorant. The stratagem by 
which the intelligence was conveyed was, by requesting 
the commander of the Vigilant to visit his crew, then 
distributed about in Warren's fleet as prisoners, that he 
might see how they fared. He expressed satisfaction 
at their treatment, when he was told that the governor 
of the fortress had treated some American prisoners 
inhumanly, and added unnecessary suffering to their 
captivity, and he was requested to interpose in their 
favor. He readily complied and addressed the follow- 
ing note to the governor. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OP LOUISBURG. 89 

[To Duchambon, Governor of Louisburg.] 

On hoard the Vic/ilant, ivhere I am a prisoner, ) 
before Louisburg, June 8, 1745. ) 

Herewith I send you, Sir, the copy of a letter written 
me by Mr. Warren, commander of a squadron, who 
informs me that the French have treated some English 
prisoners with cruelty and inhumanity. I can scarcely 
believe it, since it is the intention of the king, our 
master, that they should be well treated on every occa- 
sion. You are to know that on the 30th of May, I 
was taken by the squadron, as I was about to enter 
your harbor, and it is fitting you should be informed 
that the gentlemen, the captains and officers, treat us 
not as prisoners but as their good friends, and take 
a very particular care that my officers and equipage 
should want nothing. To me it seems just you should 
treat them in the same manner, and see that those 
be punished who act otherwise, and offer any insult to 
those whom you may make prisoners. 

Yours, etc., 

De la Maison Forte. 

Captain McDonald was bearer of the flag and note, 
the reading of which was the ffi'st intimation they had 
of the loss of the Vigilant. Although a good French 
linguist, he spoke to the enemy through an interpreter^ 
as if ignorant of their language. They conversed the 
more freely for this, and exhibited not only surprise but 
dismay, at the loss of that large ship, and all the sup- 
plies she contained. 

June 7. — To Governor Shirley : " The advice that 
Annapolis was besieged induced Commodore Warren 
to send Captains Tyng and Thompson, but receiving 
information that the siege was raised, the vessels 



90 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

returned and Rouse proceeded to Boston. Vessels were 
sent into the Strait of Canso to cut off their retreat. 
We are, therefore, unable to spare any more of the 
cruisers at present, without hazard to our main enter- 
prise. We are quite out of powder, and our batteries 
are silent; must have more. It is incredible how much 
such a siege consumes. We are under the greatest 
obligation to Commodore Warren for supplies, who has 
been very obliging every way." 

To Governor Mascarene : " I am very glad the 
enemy has raised the siege at Annapolis, and shall 
endeavor to intercept them if they retreat this way. 
On hearing you was besieged, the commodore sent two 
.ships of war to relief. Please to hasten their return 
?back, as we are hourly expecting a squadron of French 
rships." 

At a council of war of naval commanders, held on 
^board ship, " the question being put, whether w^ith the 
diaval force we have now here, it is practicable and 
-advisable to go into the harbor of Louisburg and 
^attack the town and fortresses without the island battery 
fbeing first taken, considering the assistance proposed to 
ibe given by the land forces, by General Pepperrell's 
'plan dated the 26th of May last ? " After duly con- 
sidering the difficulties and dangers of the undertaking, 
'" it was unanimously agreed that it is not practicable 
»or advisable to attack the town, without the island 
battery being first taken." The question being then 
iput, whether the island battery is to be attacked, and 
in what manner? 

" It was resolved, after having examined the pilots, 
;already on board his Majesty's ships, who declare they 
do not know how near ships can be carried to the 
ibattery, therefore decline taking charge of them ; that 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 91 

if proper pilots can be found who will take charge and 
anchor them within half a cable's length of the island 
battery, so as not to be exposed to the fire of the town, 
and further, if the general will supply us with proper 
officers and five hundred men in the whaleboats, to be 
sent on board the commodore, and to land when he 
shall think proper, to attack the island battery under 
protection of the ships, we will then use our endeavors 
to attempt it as soon as the wind and weather will 
permit. 

June 8. — To Commodore Warren : " Your favors 
by Col. McDonald with a copy of the opinion of the 
commanders of the squadron relating to attacking the 
town and island battery, is received. Since the expe- 
rience we have had of its strength, the great difficulty 
of landing, the probable transportation of the enemy 
there, I cannot think it advisable to attack it again in 
whaleboats which a few musket balls mio;ht sink. 
The circumstances of the army do not admit of any 
more vigorous measures at present than were proposed 
in our plan of May 25th. I am doing my utmost 
to forward every thing which appears to me best for 
speedy success. Am very sorry that you and the 
gentlemen who command his Majesty's ships, by mis- 
representation from any of what has been done by our 
troops, should apprehend that no material damage has 
been done to any of the enemy's batteries, when I am 
able to assure you that the circular battery, which is 
the most considerable of any in the city, is nearly 
ruined, only three or four guns out of sixteen being 
left. If you decline going in with your ships, we shall 
continue to do what we can with our batteries ; hope 
to have the light-house battery completed to annoy the 
island battery, and your ships might attack it from the 



92 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

outside and be safe to retreat. I send you three pilots 
to take your ships to anchorage near it. Col. McDonald 
has been in with your letter and the Marquis's, and 
will bring you an answer. I shall be happy to wait 
upon you on shore." 

June 9. — To the same : " Our smiths are mak- 
ing langrage and manicles. We have two Swiss 
deserters who say there are about one thousand six 
hundred to one thousand eight hundred men in 
Louisburg capable of bearing arms, about six hun- 
dred of them soldiers ; that they are short of pro- 
visions, have not more than a month's stock, and 
but little ammunition ; that they expect to surrender if 
their ships do not soon arrive from France ; that if the 
island battery was silenced they would immediately 
surrender the town, and that a mortar at the light-house 
battery would greatly annoy them. I shall send over 
our large mortar this night and with them more cannon 
to bear upon the enemy, and shall make the island 
battery too warm for them." 

June 10. — To the same, acknowledging the receipt 
of his, advising that a large ship, the Canterbury, had 
arrived, and two others expected. " Shall be ready to 
go on board with some of my council when you think 
most convenient. I am sending a party of men in 
boats to Mira after four hundred arms and some 
ammunition sent there to supply the party expected 
from Annapolis." The two Swiss deserters being 
examined were sent off to Commodore Warren. 

Preparatory to a general assault on the fortress, 
which would expose the camp and stores to sudden 
attack by French and Indians from the interior, Pepper- 
rell ordered his men to surround it with pickets. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 93 

The bombardment now grew stronger on 
both sides ; the enemy planted six cannon in ' 

the night near the west gate which the provincials soon 
silenced. Redhot balls were poured into the town, 
and bombs thrown back in return. Scouts were con- 
tinually in motion. Three or four large ships of war 
joined the fleet on the 10th and 12th. 

June 11. — Warren concludes to sail into the harbor 
and writes : " When the wind is fair, and I expect to 
get in the same day, I will hoist a Dutch flag under my 
pennant at the maintop gallant masthead ; and as a 
signal to let us know you are ready you are to make 
three smokes. When I hoist a Dutch flag, you should 
march toward the town, drums beating and colors 
flying ; when I hoist the red flag on the flagstaff, you 
may then be assured I shall be in and begin the attack 
in about half an hour." 

June 13. — To Commodore Warren: "I wrote you 
this morning, since which I have yours advising of the 
arrival of the three large ships to join you, and desiring 
my opinion about detaining them. You, Sir, are the 
best judge, but since you solicit my opinion, I will say 
that as Annapolis is safe at present, and our affairs here 
seem to be very near to a crisis, it may be for his 
Majesty's service to detain them a while. I rejoice in 
the additions to your force." 

Again : " I am making the necessary preparations 
with all the despatch possible for attacking the town 
when the ships go in. Have ordered out all the trans- 
ports to receive your commands; have also ordered all 
the boats in the harbor to be fitted with oars and 
ladders ; shall take due notice of your signals ; have 
sent you cohorns and shells and what oakum and 
moss could be collected. The six hundred men shall 



94 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

be made up when you think it best, among which will 
be Col. Moore and the chief part of his New Hamp- 
shire regiment. I pray the loan of fifty barrels of 
powder more, which you offered us. We shall have 
three more forty-twos ready to play upon the circular 
battery, and prevent annoyance to your ships therefrom 
as they come in." 

On the 13th all the transports were ordered out of 
Cabarus Bay to the fleet, to clear them of their lumber. 
Heaps of brush were made ready on Green Hill for 
smoke signals, and scaling ladders carried to the 
advance batteries. On the 15th Warren came on 
shore, and the troops being paraded, were exhorted in 
stirring speeches, by both him and Pepperrell, to show 
their valor and heroism in the designed attack. The 
fleet, consisting of eleven ships of from forty to sixty 
guns each, all anchored in a line near the town, made 
an imposing appearance, and Pepperrell ordered six 
hundred provincials on board them to augment their 
crews. 

Governor Duchambon now saw no hope of avert- 
ing the impending storm ; his island battery, the palla- 
dium of Louisburg, Pepperrell had partially silenced 
by the light-house battery, and it was still receiving an 
incessant fire ; his north-east battery was damaged, and 
so exposed to the fire of the advanced fascine batteries 
that the men could not stand to their guns ; the circular 
battery was ruined and most of its guns dismounted ; 
the west gate demolished and a breach made in the 
adjoining wall ; the west flank of the king's bastion 
almost ruined ; the houses quite demolished ; his troops 
worn down by forty-eight days' siege and broken sleep, 
and a force of five times his number of men surround- 
ing and gathering in upon him by sea and land, like 



SIEGE AXD COXQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 95 

surging waves, ready to burst the opposing barriers and 
pour in a broad flood, he could do no otherwise than 
surrender. Accordingly, late in the afternoon of June 
loth, and while the commodore was on shore, a flag 
was sent to Pepperrell asking time to consider terms of 
capitulation. Captain Sherburn, who commanded the 
advance battery, received the officer midway between 
it and the gate. Meanwhile all firing ceased, excepting 
at the light-house battery, which continued its fire upon 
the island battery, not knowing that a parley was hold- 
ing. They returned the following answer : — 

[To Governor Duchambon.] 

Camp, June 15, 1745, 8i p. M. 

We have yours of this date proposing a suspension 
of hostilities for such a time as shall be necessary for 
you to determine upon the conditions of delivering up 
the garrison of Louisburg, which arrived at a happy 
juncture to prevent the effusion of Christian blood, as 
we wxre together, and had just determined upon a 
general attack. We shall comply with your desire 
until eight o'clock to-morrow morning, and if in the 
mean time you surrender yourselves prisoners of war, 
you may depend upon humane and generous treatment. 
We are your humble servants, 
Peter Warren, 
William Pepperrell. 

[Pepperrell and Warren's second letter to Duchambon.] 

Camp before Louisburg, June 16, 1745. 

We have before us yours of this date, together with 
the several articles of capitulation on which you have 
proposed to surrender the town and fortifications of 
Louisburg, with the territories adjacent under your 



96 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

government, to his Britannic Majesty's obedience, to be 
delivered up to his said Majesty's forces now besieging 
said place under our command ; which articles we can 
by no means concede to. But as we are desirous to 
treat you in a generous manner, we do again make you 
an offer of the terms of surrender proposed by us in our 
summons sent you May 7th last ; and do further con- 
sent to allow, and promise you the following articles, 
namely : — 

1st. That if your own vessels shall be found insuffi- 
cient for the transportation of your persons and pro- 
posed effects to France, we will supply such a number 
of other vessels as may be sufficient for that purpose, 
also any provisions necessary for the voyage which 
you cannot furnish yourselves with. 

2d. That all the commissioned officers belonging 
to the garrison, and the inhabitants of the town, may 
remain in their houses with their families, and enjoy 
the free exercise of their religion, and no person shall be 
suffered to misuse or molest any of them till such time 
as they can conveniently be transported to France. 

3d. That the non-commissioned officers and soldiers 
shall immediately upon the surrender of the town and 
fortresses, be put on board his Britannic Majesty's ships, 
till they all be transported to France. 

4th. That all your sick and wounded shall be taken 
tender care of in the same manner as our own. 

5th. That the commander-in-chief, now in garri- 
son, shall have liberty to send off covered wagons, to be 
inspected only by one officer of ours, that no warlike 
stores may be contained therein. 

6th. That if there be any persons in the town or 
garrison which may desire shall not be seen by us, they 
shall be permitted to go ofi' masked. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 97 

7th. The above we do consent to, and promise upon 
your compliance with the following conditions : — 

1. That the said surrender and due performance of 
every part of the aforesaid premises be made and com- 
pleted as soon as possible. 

2. That as a security for the punctual performance of 
the same, the island battery, or one of the batteries of 
the town, shall be delivered, together with the warlike 
stores thereunto belonging, into the possession of his Bri- 
tannic Majesty's troops before six o'clock this evening. 

3. That his said Britannic Majesty's ships of war, 
now lying before the port, shall be permitted to enter 
the harbor of Louisburg without any molestation, as 
soon after six of the clock this afternoon as the com- 
mander-in-chief of said ships shall think fit. 

4. That none of the officers, soldiers, nor inhabitants 
in Louisburg, who are subjects of the French King, 
shall take up arms against his Britannic Majesty, nor 
any of his allies, until after the expiration of the full 
term of twelve months from this time. 

5. That all subjects of his Britannic Majesty, who 
are now prisoners with you shall be immediately deliv- 
ered up to us. 

In case of your non-compliance with these conditions, 
we decline any further treaty with you on the affair, and 
shall decide the matter by our arms, and are, etc., 
Your humble servants, 

P. Warren, 
W. Pepperrell. 

[Letter from General Pepperrell to Governor Duchambon.] 

Camp before Louisburg, June 16. 

Sir, — I have yours by an hostage, signifying your 

assent to the surrender of the town and fortresses of 

9 



98 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Louisburg, and the territories adjacent, etc., etc., on the 
terms this day proposed to you by Commodore Warren 
and myself; excepting only that you desire your troops 
may march out of the garrison with their arms, and 
colors flying, to be then delivered into our custody, till 
the said troops' arrival in France, at which time to have 
them returned to them — which I consent to and send 
you an hostage for the performance of what we have 
promised, and have sent to Commodore Warren that if 
he consents to it, he would send a detachment on shore 
to take possession of the island battery. 
I am. Sir, your humble servant, 

William Pepperrell. 

[Letter from Commodore Warren to Governor Duchambon.] ^ 

Superhe, off Louisburg, June 16, 174?$. 

Sir, — I have received your letter of this date, desiring 
that His Most Christian Majesty's troops under your 
command, may have the honors of war given them, so 
far as to march to my boats, at the beach, with their 
muskets and bayonets, and colors flying, there to deliver 
them to the ofl[icers of his Britannic Majesty, whom I 
shall appoint for that purpose, to be kept in my custody 
till they shall be landed in the French king's dominions, 
then and there to be returned to them, which I agree to 
in consideration of your gallant defence, upon the fol- 
lowing conditions : — 

First, That you deliver up immediately to the officers 
and troops whom I shall appoint, the island battery 
with all the ammunition, cannon, warlike and other 
king's stores thereunto belonging, in the condition they 
now are. 

Secondly, That all the ships of war and other ves- 
sels do enter the harbor without molestation, at any 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 99 

time after daylight to-morrow morning, and that the 
keys of the toivn be delivered to such officers and troops 
as I shall appoint to receive them, and that all the can- 
non, warlike and other stores in the town, be also deliv- 
ered up to the said officer. I expect your immediate 
compliance with these terms, and beg to assure you, 
that I am with regard. Sir, 

Your most obedient and humble servant, 

P. Warren. 

June 16. — To Commodore Warren : " I understand 
you have had an hostage from the governor of Louis- 
burg, as I also have to signify his consent to our pro- 
posals, made this day, except their troops' going out of 
the garrison with their arms and colors. We have con- 
sidered the affair here, and are of opinion that it is too 
small a point to hinder any time upon, and are willing 
to grant it to them, but have thought it proper to know 
your opinion on it, and if you consent, please to send 
and take possession of the island battery, as soon as 
possible. I shall lose no time in getting our troops into 
the town." 

Warren replies : " Sir, 1 received your favor by Col. 
Moore, and am glad our sentiments agree with regard 
to allowing the troops the honors of war which they 
desired; the uncertainty of our affairs that depend so 
much on wind and weather, make it necessary not to 
stickle at trifles. I find you have got an hostage, I have 
another, and have sent Captain Durell to the governor 
in his room, and at daylight propose to send men to 
take possession of the island battery, and to go into the 
harbor with the ships if possible. I have wrote to 
Saunders to order all the vessels in Cabarus bay to fol- 
low us immediately in. I rejoice at our success, be as- 



100 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

sured, sir. I shall always be glad of your approbation 
of my conduct. I beg we may all behave to the pris- 
oners with the humanity and honor becoming English 
officers, and be persuaded it will add greatly to the rep- 
utation which we acquire by the reduction of this for- 
midable garrison. I believe you will think it right to 
send an express, both to England and Boston, as soon 
as possible. I will write no letter but what I will show 
you, that you may be convinced that I do you, and all 
the gentlemen employed on this expedition, all the 
honor in my power." 

According to the promise above stated, Warren sent 
marines to take possession of the island battery, and 
Pepperrell, in accordance with his letter, was about to 
send troops to take possession of the city ; preparatory 
to which he addressed a note to Gov. Duchambon, 
* saying, " I received a letter from Commodore 
Warren this morning in answer to mine of last night, 
in regard to your being allowed the liberty of march- 
ing with your forces out of the town with their 
arms, — drums beating, and colors flying, which he, as 
well as myself, was ready to comply with, which gives 
me pleasure. 

" I desire the favor that your officers and families, with 
the inhabitants and their families may repair to their 
own houses as soon as possible, where they may depend 
on meeting the best treatment, nor shall any person be 
suffered to give them the least disturbance ; and also that 
your troops may put their arms by themselves in the 
magazine, where they shall be kept safe, and returned to 
them the day they are to march out of the town. I 
shall send Colonel Bradstreet with a detachment at four 
o'clock this afternoon to take possession of the town and 
forts, to whom I desire you will deliver them, with all 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 101 

your warlike stores and keys. Pray send out a gentle- 
man to let Colonel Bradstreet know what gate he is 
to march in at." 

Warren writes to Pepperrell : " Sir, I came ashore to 
the island battery, and from thence to town, in order to 
settle matters relating to the capitulation as soon as 
possible. The governor has shown me your letter 
desiring he would deliver up the town, etc., to you at 
four o'clock this afternoon. It is not regular, you will 
please to observe, to do it till the articles are ratified on 
both sides, which I will hasten to get done, and will 
meet you at three or fovir o'clock at Colonel Rich- 
mond's, and if the papers proper can be by that time 
done, I will bring them with me. I am sorry to find by 
your letter a kind of jealousy, which I thought you 
would never conceive of me, after my letter to you of 
last night, and give me leave to tell you I don't want at 
this time to acquire reputation, as I flatter myself mine 
has been pretty well established long before. I shall be 
glad to see Colonel Bradstreet, Mr. Bastide, or any 
other of your council or officers with you. My squad- 
ron are now coming in, but I believe it will be night 
before they can get in. I beg leave to tell you that the 
governor expresses some little resentment at your letter 
of this date, and be assured that a proper treatment and 
strict adherence to the capitulation should never be 
violated, but on the contrary, should be righteously and 
religiously observed, otherwise we may bring dishonor- 
upon ourselves and our country, which, I am persuaded,, 
you never intend." 

Warren was right in his opinion that the terms 

of capitulation should be exchanged before occupancy, 

but wrong in attributing the letter of Pepperrell to 

Duchambon to jealousy. It originated in a belief 

9* 



102 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

that it was his duty to enter the city immediately, to 
prevent the destruction of property that belonged to the 
captors, and the ships being outside, it was uncertain 
when they would enter the harbor to assist. He had 
requested Warren to take possession of the island 
battery, and notified him of his intention to send Brad- 
street with troops to take possession that afternoon, and 
his letter to Duchambon asking a guide to enter, was 
civil and courteous, and less adapted to produce resent- 
ment than Warren's, which was dictatorial and author- 
itative if not menacing; and it is probable that its 
severe tone conveyed to Duchambon the idea that he 
was to be regarded as commander-in-chief rather than 
a coequal, and therefore that Pepperrell had overstept 
the bounds of a subordinate in requesting him to 
throw open the gates to his troops. It is, moreover, 
evident that the complaint of Warren that " it was not 
regular to ask the delivery up of the town, etc., till the 
articles are ratified on both sides," is a mere pretence, 
from the fact that the articles were not translated and 
signed for two days after, (June 19,) although Pepperrell 
(instead of Bradstreet) marched in at the head of his 
troops on the 17th. The foregoing separate letter of 
Warren to the governor claiming precedence and 
demanding the surrender of the town, etc., to himself, 
for so it reads, was unknown to Pepperrell at the time, 
and probably ever after, for it was not until a recent 
period that a copy of it was obtained from the French 
.records and deposited in the archives of the Massachu- 
setts Historical Society. It is most likely that on further 
reflection Warren assented to Pepperrell's entrance and 
reception of the keys, for they were in his custody 
a short time after, when Governor Shirley arrived, and 
were presented to him in presence of the troops under 



SIEGE AXD CONQUEST OF LOUISBUEG. 103 

arms, with formal ceremony, and Warren being present 
as a spectator, made a speech highly complimentary of 
Pepperrell and his army. 

We have dwelt longer on this subject than its appar- 
ent insignificance would seem to justify, partly because 
it produced a strong sensation at the time in New Eng- 
land, as will appear presently, but more from the fact 
that most American histories and some English ones, 
advert to it as an incident that rankled in the American 
mind until the outbreak of the Revolution. 

By the capitulation six hundred and fifty veteran 
troops, one thousand three hundred and ten militia- 
men, the crew of the Vigilant, and about two thousand 
of the inhabitants, being four thousand one hundred 
and thirty in all, engaged not to bear arms against 
Great Britain or New England for twelve months, and 
embarking on l3oard fourteen cartel ships were trans- 
ported to Rochefort in France. Seventy-six cannon 
and mortars fell into the hands of the victors, beside 
other property to an immense amount, and there were 
in the town provisions for five or six months. The loss 
among the provincials was one hundred and thirty, and 
of the French, three hundred, killed within the walls, 
which, with the shattered condition of the city and 
fortifications, proved that the nine thousand cannon 
balls and six hundred bombs Pepperrell threw at them 
had done some execution. 

Upon entering the fortress, and viewing its strength 
and the plenty and variety of its means for defence, the 
stoutest hearts were appalled ; and the practicability of 
taking it by surprise, as contemplated by Shirley, 
appeared entirely futile. 

As a decoy to French merchantmen, the French flag 



104 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

was kept flying; and the value of all the rich prizes 
taken by this stratagem was estimated at a million of 
dollars, half of which went to the crown and the other 
half to the naval captors. 

The provincial army marched into the fortress at the 
south-west gate, and paraded in a line between the 
cazmates in front of the French troops, who were 
drawn up in front of the barracks in a parallel line to 
receive them. Salutations were exchanged, and formal 
possession taken. 

A banquet was prepared by Pepperrell for the 
officers. Several chaplains were present, and the senior 
one, old Parson Moody of York, the uncle of Mrs. 
Pepperrell, was of right called upon to crave the 
blessing. Moody's friends were anxious lest he should 
disgust the guests by a prolix performance, such as he 
often indulged in ; but his temper was so irritable that 
none would suggest that brevity would be acceptable. 
They were agreeably disappointed and highly gratified 
by his performing in the following manner : " Good 
Lord I we have so many things to thank thee for, that 
time will be infinitely too short to do it ; we must there- 
fore leave it for the work of eternity. Bless our food 
and fellowship upon this joyful occasion, for the sake 
of Christ our Lord, Amen." 

[Official Report of the Victory to Governor Shirley.] 

June 18. — " May it please your Excellency, it is with 
the utmost pleasure that I now congratulate you and 
my country on the happy issue of our enterprise 
against Louisburg, which was effected through God's 
goodness by the surrender of this strong fortress, etc., 
on the 16th instant, upon terms of capitulation agreed 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 105 

to with the governor of said place, by Commodore 
Warren, and myself, a copy of which I have inclosed 
to your Excellency ; and accordingly the fleet came into 
the harbor, and a detachment of om* troops with myself 
entered the town yesterday and this morning. The 
French troops marched out and were embarked on 
board the ships. We are with all possible speed 
removing every thing from the camp into town, and are 
taking an account of the state of the garrison and of 
stores found here, which I shall send with this, if it can 
be accomplished in season. We find our shot and 
bombs have prodigiously distressed and damaged the 
enemy. The circular battery is almost entirely demol- 
ished ; but I must omit particulars. Many of our army 
will be impatient to return home. I desire your direc- 
tions on that head, also relating to Canso, etc., etc. I 
shall forthwith forward despatches to the Duke of 
Newcastle to inform his Grace of our success and 
situation. 

" I need not again express to you. Sir, that I esteem 
it of the happiest consequence that his Majesty's ships 
were sent here under the command of a gentleman 
whose distinguished merit and goodness New England 
claims a particular right to honor and rejoice in. I 
should want words to express the instances of his zeal 
in the affair, and the entire readiness he has shown 
through the whole of it, to give the army all possible 
assistance, but to your Excellency and every one who 
knows him, it is enough to say, Commodore Warren 
was here. I was favored with his company on shore 
the day Mr. Duchambon sent out his first letter desiring 
suspension of hostilities, and we had just before, agreed 
upon a general attack by land and sea the first oppor- 
tunity ; but heaven has given us an easier victory than 



106 LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

that might probably have been. We have not lost 
above one hundred men by the enemy in this vast 
enterprise, including the disaster at the island battery." 
After speaking of the wants of provisions, flags, and 
building materials to make the necessary repairs, he 
adds ; " I believe such ruins were never seen before, 
which, however, is not to be wondered at, as we gave 
the town about nine thousand cannon balls and six 
hundred bombs before they surrendered, which sorely 
distressed them, especially the day before they sent out 
a flag of truce, when our incessant fire on the town 
prevented their showing their heads or stirring from 
their covert ways, and from our light-house battery we 
played upon the island battery with our cannon and 
large>mortar, so that some of them ran into the sea for 
shelter." 

To Governor Wentworth of New Hampshire and 
Governor Law of Connecticut he sends an official report 
of the victory, the terms of capitulation, and says, " The 
next day the ships entered the harbor, and a detachment 
of the troops with myself marched into town." Says 
their respective troops of each State have been always 
ready to take their share of fatigue. Compliments 
Commodore Warren as having done every thing in his 
power. 

[Letter to Governor "Wanton.] 

Louishxirg, July 25, 1745. 

May it please your Excellency : — 

I received your favor of the 29th of June per Captain 
Mumford, and congratulate you and the gentlemen of 
Rhode Island colony upon the happy success of his 
Majesty's arms in the reduction of this place and terri- 
tories adjacent, an account of which I am sensible has 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 107 

reached you some time since, and am persuaded was 
received with that pleasure which must fill the breast 
of all his Majesty's subjects, and of every welhvisher 
to the prosperity of the colonies. The three companies 
raised in your colony for our assistance, with commis- 
sion from you, (whose advancement to the chair of 
government I beg leave to congratulate you on,) arrived 
here last week, and you may be assured shall have my 
favor and countenance in every thing in my power. I 
have transmitted to the Duke of Newcastle an account 
of our success, and of the present condition of this 
place, and am persuaded speedy measures will be 
taken for the support and defence of it. But until his 
Majesty's pleasure is known it will be necessary to keep 
a large body of troops here, and as many of those wlio 
first came have been detained beyond what they ex- 
pected, they will be impatient to return to their families, 
which will render a supply of fresh troops necessary, it 
being somewhat doubtful if any can be sent from 
Europe this year. A great stock of provisions and 
warlike stores to be laid in here before the fall is far 
advanced, is also necessary. I think there ought to be 
at least twelve or fifteen months' provisions for three or 
four thousand men, and I flatter myself that those 
governments who have been ready to join their assist- 
ance for the reduction of this place, will not be back- 
ward in affording their aid in what may be necessary 
for keeping it from ever falling into the hands of the 
French again. You will hear by the way of Boston of 
the taking a ship off this harbor two days since, which 
proved to be a very rich Indiaman. 

I am. Sir, your most humble servant, 

William Pepperrell. 



108 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Captain Beniiet was despatched to Boston with an 
account of the conquest, and arrived on the 3d of July 
about one in the morning. Before sunrise bells were 
ringing, and cannon roaring, and joyful faces crowding 
the streets with shouts of victory. The Rev. Dr. 
Cha'uncy writes to Pepperrell on the 4th of July : " I 
heartily congratulate you upon the news we received 
yesterday about break of day, of the reduction of Cape 
Breton. The people of Boston, before sunrise, were as 
thick about the streets as on an election day, and a 
pleasing joy visibly sat on the countenance of every one 
met with. 

" As God has made you an instrument of so much 
service to your country, at the hazard of your life, and 
the expense of great labor and fatigue, your name is 
deservedly and universally spoken of with respect, and 
I doubt not will be handed down with honor to the 
latest posterity. 

" We had, last night, the finest illumination I ever 
beheld with my eyes. I believe there was not a house 
in town, in no by-lane or alley, but joy might be seen 
through its windows. The night also was made joyful 
by bonfires, fireworks, and all other external tokens of 
rejoicing. But I hope we shall in a better manner still 
commemorate the goodness of God in this remarkable 
victory obtained against our enemies. I hear next 
Thursday is set apart for a day of general thanksgiving 
through the province ; and I believe there is not a man 
in the country but will heartily join in thanksgivings to 
God for his appearance on our behalf." The letter 
concludes with the highest encomiums upon Commo- 
dore Warren's character, and his good conduct in the 
siege. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 109 

The news of this brilliant achievement filled America 
with joy, and Europe with astonishment. Not only- 
Boston, but New York and Philadelphia celebrated it 
with ringing of bells, firing of salutes, and illuminations. 
Volumes of congratulatory letters poured in upon Pep- 
perrell from towns, corporations, and distinguished citi- 
zens, and a day was set apart for thanksgiving in most 
of the New England colonies. On the arrival of Cap- 
tain Montague, who went express with the news of the 
surrender to London, the Lords Commissioners of the 
Admiralty made him a present of five hundred guineas; 
the cannon of the Tower and Park were fired by order 
of the Lords of the Regency ; at night there were great 
rejoicings with illuminations and bonfires in the city 
and in places adjacent, and a general joy and gladness 
diffused itself through the whole kingdom. Almost 
every city presented congratulatory addresses to the 
king on his return from Hanover. Despatches had 
been previously sent to him while there, on receiving 
which, he expressed the highest satisfaction, and 
ordered it to be signified to the commanders and 
other officers and men, by sea and land, who had 
been instrumental therein. Order was given that 
General Pepperrell be directed to acquaint the officers 
with his Majesty's gracious approbation of their ser- 
vices on this occasion ; and in further testimony how 
acceptable this important acquisition was to his Maj- 
esty, a patent was sent from Hanover creating General 
Pepperrell a Baronet of Great Britain, an honor never 
before conferred on a native of America. Commodore 
Warren was promoted to be Admiral, and was recom- 
mended by the Lords Justices to be appointed gov- 
ernor of the place, which was accordingly done the 
following year, until which time, the government of 

10 



110 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Cape Breton was administered by Warren and Pepper- 
rell conjointly. 

To Pepperrell was given a commission to raise 
and command a regiment in the British line. Gov- 
ernor Shirley also received a colonel's commission, 
as a reward for his services in projecting and promot- 
ing the expedition. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. Ill 



CHAPTER V. 

The weather, which through the last forty days of 
the siege was remarkably fine for the season, soon 
changed, and an incessant rain of ten days succeeded. 
Had this happened before the surrender, hundreds then 
sick with the dysentery must have perished. There 
was, throughout the expedition, a favorable concurrence 
of circumstances, some of tliem nowise dependent 
upon human action or foresight, and the hand of Provi- 
dence was never more visible. " If any one circum- 
stance," says Douglas, " had taken a wrong turn on our 
side, or if any one circumstance had taken a right turn 
on the French side, the expedition must have miscar- 
ried." The general attributed the event to nothing less 
than divine interposition, in answer to the prayers that 
were offered up daily by the people throughout New 
England, and weekly in meetings of most of the relig- 
ious societies specially convened for the purpose. 

Sir William and the Admiral were highly compli- 
mented by the Duke of Newcastle and others, as will 
presently appear, for their harmonious cooperation for 
the good of the service at Louisburg. More credit is, 
however, due to Pepperrell in this particular than to 
Warren. They both strove to be faithful to their trust, 
but Warren knew less of character and the springs of 
human action than Pepperrell. He never could have 
raised an army of volunteers like Pepperrell's, nor have 
controlled them by such gentle measures. Not a single 



112 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

soldier was punished till long after the capitulation. 
Accustomed to connmand rough and turbulent sailors, 
Warren knew little how to discipline men otherwise 
than by main force. Nor could he like Pepperrell, treat 
those near him in rank, when their opinions ran counter 
to his, with due courtesy and respect. He had the 
fortiter in re^ but not the suaviter in modo of Pepperrell, 
as was manifested on several occasions. 

Pepperrell received a morose letter from Warren, 
reflecting on him and his council, the nature of which 
appears in the following reply, which shows his imper- 
turbable spirit and self-possession, as compared with 
the petulance of the commodore. 

July 18. — To Commodore Warren : " Yours of the 
16th instant I received yesterday afternoon. I never 
doubted of your hearty concern for having this con- 
quest duly secured and settled to the best advantage as 
speedily as possible, and of your readiness to contribute 
every thing in your power thereto, and am sorry your 
letter discovers any thing like an apprehension in you 
that I am not equally so, but as I join with you entirely 
that it is best to act in an amicable and friendly 
manner towards each other as we have hitherto done, 
I will at present pass by the reflections therein on my 
own and my council's conduct. 

" I find, Sir, the particulars that give you great con- 
cern are, that we make so little advances in settling this 
place ; that the army are in want of some necessaries, 
and you apprehend are not duly supplied with others ; 
and that so many of the men have been allowed to 
return home. As to the first, as you have not pointed 
out any particular instance of my backwardness, I am at 
a loss to know what you refer to. We have, together 
and separately, represented the state of this place, and 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 113 

what is necessary to be done for its encouragement, both 
to the ministry at home, and to the several governments 
of New England, and are waiting their answers. In the 
mean time the army is employed in such works as his 
Majesty's engineer thinks most necessary, and as I 
have before mentioned to you, I am ready to give all 
the encouragement in my power to any persons that 
shall appear willing to settle here. As to the army's 
wanting necessaries, it gives me as much uneasiness as 
it possibly can you, and would give me more had I not 
made repeated pressing reqrtests to Governor Shirley 
for supplies, some part of which have arrived, and 
I daily expect more, and in the mean time shall do my 
utmost to make them easy under the want of them, 
and as to their not being duly supplied with what we 
have, I have made inquiry, and do not find any blame 
due to the commissaries in that respect. 

" As to the men sent home, which are about seven 
hundred, they were many of them sick and lame and 
otherwise incapable of duty, and the rest such as the 
circumstances of their families would have rendered it 
cruel to detain ihem here, without an absolute necessity 
which I did not apprehend, as we have above three 
thousand troops now on the spot, and more coming in 
every day. I have been and shall always be ready to 
advise with you and communicate the advice of my 
council, and shall readily join with you in prosecuting 
any thing that can be done for his Majesty's service in 
regulating, securing, and settling this important and 
glorious conquest." 

Almost every published history of the siege and con- 
quest of Louisburg speaks, as already stated, of a con- 
tention between the two commanders for the honor of 
receiving the keys. Some rumor of the kind probably 

10* 



114 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

reached Boston, which, in the highly excited state of 
the public mind, enkindled a flame of indignation 
against Warren, and evoked censures npon Pepperrell, 
for having, as was supposed, yielded to him. 

The following letter of Rev. Dr. Chauncy is a speci- 
men of the feeling existing at the time, written only 
two or three weeks after his congratulations to Pepper- 
rell, and his encomiums upon Warren, and verifies the 
remark of an eminent statesman, that " error may travel 
far, whilst truth is pulling on its boots." In this case 
truth has never overtaken and entirely corrected it. 

" It is commonly talked in town," says Chauncy, 
" that the keys of Louisburg- were delivered.) not to you., 
but to Commodore Warren., and that he has acted too 
much as though the command of the place belonged to 
ihim. You will see the sense of both branches of the 
legislature upon this head, in their address to the gov- 
ernor to go to Cape Breton. It is, indeed, highly 
iresented by every New England man in Boston., that Mr. 
Warren should pretend to assume the government at 
Louisburg, and he has lost a great deal of credit in the 
affair, and some things are said to your disadvantage, 
(for not exerting yourself for the honor of New England 
upon this occasion. How far you did exert yourself 
we do not indeed know; but your best friends wish 
you had insisted upon the preeminence due to you and 
the troops under your command, so as even to have 
given up the capitulation if it had not been conceded 
to. If the high-admiral of England had been there., he 
would not have had the least right to command anywhere 
but in his own ships. How far a certain colonel {Brad- 
street) may have had an hand in making mischief we 
know not. But some of your very good friends are of 
opinion, that affairs would have been managed full as 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 115 

well if he had not been there, or less regard had been 
paid to him." 

Rev. Professor Henry Flynt, towards the conclusion 
of a congratulatory letter, writes : " You need nothing 
more to add to the glory of your life, but a heart full of 
humble and permanent gratitude to Almighty God who 
has improved you as a remarkable instrument to bring 
about this happy event, so glorious to yourself, your 
king, and country. Our joy was something abated in 
hearing of misunder standing between yourself and the 
commodore^ but revived again ivlien ive ivere informed 
there were so little ground for those reports^ Pepper- 
rell, as already stated, marched into the city at the hour 
he had named to the governor, received the keys, and 
some weeks after passed them over to Shirley, and no 
objection appears to have been made to it by Warren. 

It must be admitted that Pepperell's situation vs^as 
surrounded with trials and difficulties, which required the 
utmost patience and forbearance, and such as few com- 
manders could have managed successfully. Many of 
his officers and men were personal acquaintances and 
neighbors, with whom he was again to mingle, after 
their return from the scene of war, and they would not 
endure the severities of military discipline usually 
required in a siege. The daily jars arising between 
both officers and men, who had left their comfortable 
firesides to follow him to scenes of danger and priva- 
tion, required his utmost skill and tact to settle them 
amicably. Added to this were the daily supervision 
necessary in every department of the service, daily 
sittings of the council of war, frequent correspondence 
with the governors of New England and with Warren, 
the heavy responsibility and anxiety working upon his 
mind as to the result of the enterprise, the deficiency of 



116 LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

timely supplies of provisions and munitions of war, 
together with broken sleep under a tent, and the 
frequent occurrence of accidents and disasters, were col- 
lectively sufficient to exhaust the energies of any man. 
Yet nothing seemed to disturb his equanimity, and 
nothing like complaint escaped from his lips or pen, 
with one or two exceptions, throughout the siege. 

The officers of Pepperrell's army requested Governor 
Shirley, soon after the capitulation, to visit Louisburg. 
Sickness had commenced among the troops, and they 
were discontented and dissatisfied at their detention 
beyond the time for which they enlisted, which was 
during the expedition. Those from Massachusetts 
received only twenty-five shillings a month ; those from 
Connecticut forty ; and those from Rhode Island fifty 
shillings, which occasioned great discontent. Shirley 
raised the pay of those of his own State to forty 
shillings, which quieted their almost open rebellion. 
On his return to Boston the governor addressed the 
legislature then assembled, in a speech which furnishes 
some interesting historical facts. After congratulat- 
ing them on the conquest, and repeating the high 
encomiums bestowed on their zeal and patriotism by 
the king, which were by his order transmitted by 
the Duke of Newcastle, announcing also the honors 
conferred on Pepperrell and Warren, he adds, that 
Governor Thomas of Pennsylvania, and Governor 
Clinton of New York, had sent clothing, and that pro- 
visions had arrived there from the provinces of New 
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, which 
were granted by those respective governments for the 
use of the garrison; that he had raised three hundred 
and twenty-nine recruits, and Connecticut one hundred 
and seventy, to relieve the soldiers there ; that he had 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 117 

transmitted to his Majesty a full account of the pro- 
ceedings of the New England troops during the late 
siege, from the time of their landing at Cabarus Bay to 
the surrender of the town. And he adds : " I have 
the satisfaction to declare, from the knowledge I gained 
upon the spot, that their conduct and behavior have 
been such as will reflect a lasting honor upon the colo- 
nies to which the troops respectively belong ; that the 
difficulties they grappled with, the toils and fatigues 
they underwent during the seven weeks' siege, required 
the most unwearied perseverance and fixed resolution, 
as well as bravery, and such as none but men deter- 
mined by the help of Divine Providence to conquer, 
and I think I may, without partiality to them, say, none 
but themselves would have surmounted." 

As already mentioned, several rich prizes were, by 
keeping the French flag hoisted, decoyed into Louis- 
burg and captured by the British fleet, amounting to 
the sum of a million of dollars.* The proceeds of sales 
were divided, one half to the crown, and the other half 
exclusively among the officers and crews of the fleet. 
This was probably in accordance with naval rules, but 
in the present case was any thing but fair, since but for 
the toil and enterprise of the army, the fortress had not 
been taken, with its flagstaff's to hoist false colors upon. 
To use a homely expression, the army " beat the bush " 
and the navy " caught the bird." Some portion of the 
prize money ought in equity to have been distributed 
among the provincials, but they were told that their 
portion of the plunder was to be gathered on the land, 



*Two East India ships, amounting in value to 175,000/., and the 
South Sea ship, decoyed by Fletcher in the Boston packet under the 
guns of the fleet, and taken August 22d, was valued at 800,000/. 



118 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

and that the crown would probably divide the Island of 
Cape Breton among the soldiers. The only thing they 
however realized was a mere trifle accruing from the 
sale of provisions and clothing which the commissary 
department purchased of them at auction. 

In September it was resolved by the council to send 
three hundred to four hundred troops to St. Johns' 
Island (Prince Edward's) to take possession. In Octo- 
ber the cannon and stores were ordered from Canso to 
Louisburg, and also from the grand battery as well as 
the palisadoes and fascines that had been provided 
before the surrender of the city. The cannon from the 
grand battery were returned and remounted there the 
following March. 

August 6. — Sir William notifies Governor Shirley 
of a reported army of ten thousand being on their way 
from Quebec to the English frontiers, adding, — 

" My chief fear is, that the Canada men who lately 
besieged Annapolis will soon ruin the frontier of Maine. 
Onr army is extremely destitute ; appearances alone, 
Avithout hearing their frequent complaints, would move 
the pity of any one of the least compassion. Soldiers 
are almost naked, many of them barefooted. Of the 
shoes sent, only about four and a half pairs to a com- 
pany, and these too small. This climate is very subject 
to fogs and rains. Want of clothing, good lodging, 
and good water, and the noisomeness of the town, 
occasioned by so long a siege, with disappointment at 
not being able to return, so sinks their spirits that they 
are daily falling sick. There is a general dissatisfaction 
and uneasiness in the army as a consequence, and 
unless speedy care be taken to redress grievances, the 
consequences will be fatal. The pay of Massachusetts 
troops must be on a par with that of Rhode Island and 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 119 

Connecticut. New levies must be raised, and provisions 
and clothing sent forthwith." 

[Official Account to the Duke of Newcastle, by Commodore "Warren and 

General Pepperrell.] 

June 18. 

May it please your Grace : — 

We presume you have been made acquainted, by- 
Governor Shirley, of the expedition intended against 
Louisburg and the territory thereunto belonging. We 
have now only time to congratulate your Grace on the 
success of his Majesty's arms by the surrender of said 
place on the 16th instant, after a siege of forty-nine 
days, on terms of capitulation, a copy of which we 
inclose to your Grace. The repeated timely assistance 
of the squadron of his Majesty's ships sent here, 
deserves our most grateful acknowledgments. The 
acquisition of this strong fortress which much exceeds- 
our most extended apprehensions, will, we are per- 
suaded, be thought of great advantage to his Majesty's 
dominions, especially in North America, and that 
immediate care will be taken for the defence thereof,, 
by the nation ; also that his Majesty's subjects who> 
voluntarily engaged in the expedition will be entitled 
to such favor from his Majesty as will animate them to 
make further progress against the settlements of the 
French in America, and flatter ourselves that his 
Majesty will be graciously pleased to approve of, by 
confirming such persons in their posts for their zeal and 
good behavior, as we from personal observation take 
leave to recommend to his favor. 

June 26. — To the Lords Commissioners of the 
Admiralty, Pepperrell repeats the substance of the joint 
letter to the Duke of Newcastle. Compliments War- 



120 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

ren, speaks of the value of the conquest, and of the 
readiness of the New England troops to make further 
acquisitions. 

June 28. — Pepperrell writes to the Duke of New- 
castle a separate letter corresponding with the joint one, 
and speaks more particularly of the hard services of 
the provincials, what they had done, etc., and compli- 
ments Warren. 

June 29. — To Governor Shirley : " The council 
advises earnestly to request you to visit Louisburg. 
Commodore Warren sent Captain Montague, on 22d, 
to England, and has ordered Rouse to proceed with a 
duplicate." 

July 4. — A duplicate by Rouse, and which also 
advises the establishment of two provincial regiments, 
and to send one of regulars, to protect the place ; men- 
tions the condition and wants of the fortress and need 
of supplies, and recommends Captain Rouse to favor, 
and to have the command of a snow. Same day 
writes to Governor Shirley pressingly for supplies, and 
for his presence. Says Mr. Duchambon and all the 
French are off, the officers and families in the Laun- 
ceston. 

July 8. — Repeats the request for more supplies ; says 
the army is very destitute and is impatient to get 
home. 

July 9. — To Governor Mascarene giving account of 
the victory. 

July 18. — To Governor Shirley. Calls for more 
stores, and rum, and molasses. Says Fletcher has 
taken a large schooner at St. Anns, laden with pro- 
visions from Quebec. He adds : " I design the army 
shall join with our country, to-morrow, in thankfully 
acknowledging the special favor of Divine Providence 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 121 

that has most remarkably attended our labors ia thig 
expedition." 

[To Governor Wanton of Rhode Island.] 

September 13. 

Sir, — I received with pleasure your letter congratu* 
latory upon the success of his Majesty's arms under my 
command here, and as you express the full sense your 
colony has of the consequences of this acquisition to 
the trade and security of the plantations, etc., and your 
readiness to support the troops lately sent here by your 
government if his Majesty shall judge it necessary. I 
take this opportunity to mention to you that it is uncer- 
tain when his Majesty's pleasure will be known, but it 
is my opinion that the continuance of your troops here, 
and your support of them till that time, will be accept- 
able to the king, and that, therefore, you make the 
speediest provision of various kinds, of good bedding 
and serviceable warm clothing fit for soldiers in this 
most inclement climate. There is a deficiency of 
twenty-eight men in the companies you sent, as by the 
memorandum given me by Captain Smith. I hope 
you will not fail to supply them as soon as possible, 
especially as there is a squadron of French men-of-war 
on our coast, who may make some sudden and bold 
push to our disadvantage, if the garrison be not v^'^ell 
manned. Or should they not attempt it until spring, 
it may happen that they will come before recruits from 
New England can arrive. 

Yours, etc., 

William Pepperrell. 

11 



122 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



[Letter from the Duke of Newcastle.] 

Whitehall, August 10, 1745, 

Sir, — I received on the 20th of last month per Cap- 
tain Montague, yours and Mr. Warren's joint letter of 
the 18th of June, with the agreeable news of the reduc- 
tion of the fort and town of Louisburg, and of the terri- 
tory thereunto belonging to his Majesty's obedience, and 
I had by the same opportunity your separate letter of the 
same date. On the 20th Captain Geary arrived, and 
brought me your letter of June 28th, and yours and Mr. 
Warren's joint letter of July 4th, with duplicates of your 
former despatches. I laid them all immediately before 
the Lords Justices, who had the greatest joy in an 
event which does so much honor to his Majesty's arms, 
and may be attended with such happy consequences to 
the trade and commerce of his Majesty's subjects ; and 
their Excellencies recommended to me in a particular 
manner, to assure you of the sense they have of your 
prudence, courage, and conduct which contributed so 
greatly to the success of this enterprise. As I lost no 
time in transmitting copies of your despatches to my 
Lord Harrington at Hanover, to be laid before the king, 
I have now the pleasure to acquaint you that the news 
of the reduction of Louisburg was received by his 
Majesty with the highest satisfaction, which the king 
has commanded should be signified to all the com- 
manders and other officers, both of land and sea, who 
were instrumental therein : in consequence of which, I 
am to desire you would acquaint the officers under 
your command with his Majesty's most gracious appro- 
bation of their services upon this occasion. It is a 
great satisfaction to me to acquaint you that his 
Majesty has thought fit to distinguish the commanders- 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 123 

in-chief of this expedition, by conferring on you the 
dignity of a Baronet of Great Britain, (upon which I 
beg leave most sincerely to congratulate you,) and by 
giving a flag to Mr. Warren. The Lords Justices have 
thought proper to recommend Mr. Warren to his 
Majesty to be appointed Governor of Louisburg, and 
his commission for that purpose will be sent to him by 
the first opportunity. The Lords Justices had under 
their consideration what orders might be necessary to 
be immediately given for securing this important con- 
quest, and as you and Mr. Warren have represented the 
necessity of establishing a garrison of regular troops 
there, their Excellencies have ordered two regiments to 
be sent thither immediately from Gibraltar; and as 
orders were despatched to Gibraltar on the 27th past, to 
hold the regiments in readiness to embark for Cape 
Breton immediately upon the arrival of the transports 
from hence, we hope they may arrive at Louisburg in 
good time. Their Excellencies have not yet received 
his Majesty's pleasure with regard to the establishing 
one or more regiments of the New England forces now 
at Louisburg, as proposed by you and Mr. Warren, but 
no time will be lost in settling that affair ; and I shall 
be able to acquaint you, when I have the next opportu- 
nity of writing, with what shall have been determined 
therein. In the mean time you may be assured that in 
this consideration the greatest regard will be had to 
establish a sufficient force for the defence of this im- 
portant place, which will give an opportunity to distin- 
guish your merit and signal services, and also that of 
those gentlemen under your command, who have be- 
haved so well in the service of their king and country. 



124 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

[Here follows a short detail of the arrangements for supporting the 
garrison of Louisburg, and for the adjustment of its accounts.] 

. . . The Lords Justices were very glad to find that 
you had under consideration how to enter upon a treaty 
with the Indians in the interests of France. And I am 
to recommend it to you to use your utmost endeavors 
to cultivate and improve the good disposition which 
you think they have, to come into our interest. Direc- 
tions will be given for providing here, and sending 
by the first opportunity, such presents as are usually 
made to those people. As to the other points men- 
tioned in your letters, particularly the establishing of a 
civil government at Louisburg; the making it a free 
port for a certain time ; the giving a power to grant 
lands to such of his Majesty's subjects as should be 
willing to settle there, etc., I can at present only 
acquaint you that they are under consideration, and 
that no time will be lost in coming to a determination 
upon them. 

I am persuaded it is unnecessary for me to recom- 
mend it to you to continue to employ the same zeal, 
vigilance, and activity you have already exerted, in 
doing every thing that shall be necessary for the security 
and preservation of Louisburg, in which the Lords Jus- 
tices are persuaded that you and Mr. Warren will have 
the hearty concurrence and assistance of Governor 
Shirley, who has had so great a share in the forming 
and carrying into execution this enterprise. As the 
perfect union and harmony which has happily subsisted 
between you and Mr. Warren has so eminently con- 
tributed to the success of that undertaking, the Lords 
Justices have the firmest confidence that the same good 
agreement will continue between you; and that you 
will employ your joint endeavors for securing in the 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 125 

most effectual manner the valuable acquisition that has 
been made by his Majesty's forces under your com- 
mand. 

I am, with great truth and regard, Sir, 
Your most obedient, humble servant, 

HoLLES, Newcastle. 

[Letter from the Secretary of the Admiralty.] 

Avgust S, 1745. 

Sir, — I have received and communicated to my 
Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, your letter of 
the 28th of June, giving an account of the reduction of 
Louisburg and the territories adjacent, with a copy of 
the terms of capitulation, and am commanded by their 
Lordships to congratulate you on the success of his 
Majesty's arms in that expedition, and particularly on 
the part you have had in it. The prudence and zeal 
with which Commodore Warren has acted, is highly to 
be commended, and the happy harmony which has sub- 
sisted between you, without which enterprises of war 
are seldom prosperous, has greatly contributed to your 
success. The ministry here are highly sensible of the 
value of this acquisition, which is of so much impor- 
tance to the trade of his Majesty's subjects in North 
America, and have already ordered two regiments from 
Gibraltar to be carried to Louisburg in transports, pro- 
vided here for that purpose under a proper convoy, and 
will, I make no doubt, effectually support this new con- 
quest, and reward the valor of the officers and others 
concerned in it equal to their merit, to whom Mr. War- 
ren has done justice in his letters ; * and I heartily wish 

* This shows that Warren wrote very favorably of the Provincials. 
It is to be regretted that his letters containing his opinion of Pepper- 

11* 



126 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

you the satisfaction of seeing this important place well 
secured to the crown of England, and that the trade of 
the colonies of America may flourish in the advantages 
they will secure thereby. 

I am, with great regard, Sir, etc., etc., 

Thomas Corbett. 

[Pepperrell to the Duke of Newcastle.] 

Louisburg, Oct. 3, 1745. 

My Lord Duke, — I have the honor of your Grace's 
letter of the 10th of August by the Shirley galley, which 
came to hand the 23d of September. I beg leave to 
assure your Grace that it gives me the highest pleasure 
to find thereby that the news of the reduction of Louis- 
burg and the territory thereunto belonging, was received 
with so much satisfaction by his Majesty and the Lords 
Justices, and that they have done me the honor to sig- 
nify their approbation of my best endeavors for the 
service of my Royal Master's interest, and the good of 
my country in this enterprise ; and I would beg leave 
especially, with the utmost gratitude, to acknowledge 
and render my most humble thanks to his Majesty for 
his Royal favor in the great and unexpected dignity he 
has been graciously pleased to confer on my family, by 
creating me a Baronet of Great Britain, (for your 
Grace's congratulations thereon I beg leave sincerely to 
thank you). I hope I shall always be ready to express 
a just sense of his Majesty's royal goodness therein, by 
improving all opportunities in my power to cultivate 
and confirm in the hearts of his New England subjects. 



rell are not on hand. There is reason to believe, however, that 
the compliments so frequently and profusely bestowed on him by 
Pepperrell, were reciprocated in his official letters to the Board of 
Admiralty. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 127 

those principles of loyalty and attachment to his Royal 
family, which are already so universally embraced by 
them, and by exerting myself on all occasions for the 
honor of his Majesty's arms. It is also grateful to me 
to find that his Majesty has been graciously pleased to 
express his approbation of the officers and soldiers who 
engaged with me against this place, and that such 
speedy measures are concerting for the effectual encour- 
agement and support of this acquisition, as appears by 
the troops and stores ordered here, mentioned in your 
Grace's letter, and by the other particulars which Mr. 
Warren and myself took the liberty to recommend 
being under consideration to be determined upon with- 
out loss of time. And it was with pleasure that I 
received your Grace's information that the government 
of this place is given to a gentleman so well qualified 
and disposed to promote the welfare and prosperity of 
it as Mr. Warren, and that the good agreement which 
hitherto has, and I am persuaded always will subsist 
between us, is so acceptable to his Majesty and their 
Excellencies. And as nothing induced me to engage 
at first in this enterprise but the honor of his Majesty's 
arms and the good of my country, I determined posi- 
tively not to let any punctilio of ceremony with the 
chief commanding sea officer, in regard of precedency 
or superiority, prejudice his Majesty's service, as has 
been the case in several expeditions ; and I shall with 
satisfaction leave this place under his protection as soon 
as his commission and the troops necessary for its secu- 
rity shall arrive here. Your Grace will be informed by 
him of the capture of a rich South Sea ship, two East 
India ships, and several other valuable prizes, that ivere 
taken in sight of the troops., some weeks after we had 
possession of this fortress, and which they will think it 



128 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

a hardship not to share in, whilst it will be so great a 
reward to the sea officers and sailors. 

[After complimenting Governor Shirley for his zeal 
and activity in the enterprise, he says] : — When the 
governor first proposed to me to take the command of 
the troops raised for this expedition, I- decfined, on 
account of the circumstances of my family and busi- 
ness, which were such as I thought would not admit of 
my leaving them, and it was by his importunity that I 
was prevailed upon to take the command, — he urging 
as a reason therefor, that the expedition would not go 
on without himself or I should go at the head of it; and 
that if he were to go, (besides his doubt whether he 
could possibly justify his leaving his government with- 
out special leave from his Majesty,) this expedition 
might not be properly supported from New England in 
his absence, and since the reduction of the place, he has 
desired me to remain here until it is effectually secured 
by his Majesty ; but hope I shall have liberty to visit 
my family very soon. 

I am, with all possible esteem and regard, may it 

please your Grace, your Grace's most obedient and 

most humble servant, 

W. P. 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 129 



CHAPTER VT. 

When Sir "William received his royal commission as 
colonel, he was acting as governor conjointly 
with Warren. They had both united with ^^^J^^^^' 
Shirley in recommending to the Duke of New- 
castle and to the King to prosecute the war vigorously 
against Canada by further expeditions. Their advice 
prevailed, and in accordance with it, his Majesty ordered 
Sir William and Shirley to fill their new regiments as 
soon as possible, to the full quota of one thousand men 
each. Accordingly they opened rendezvous at Louis- 
burg, and enlisted some from the Provincial forces re- 
maining there, and Sir William sent recruiting officers 
to St. Johns (Prince Edward) and to Newfoundland. 

Ryan, the lieutenant-colonel of Sir William's new 
regiment, was sent from England in December, and 
with him went the commissions for other officers, and 
some blank commissions, signed by his Majesty, for Sir 
William to fill with the names of such provincial offi- 
cers as had distinguished themselves in the siege, and 
such others as could aid him most effectually in recruit- 
ing. This privilege, given to both Pepperrell and Shir- 
ley, was rarely conferred on a colonel of a regiment, 
and in the present instance was intended as an expres- 
sion of his Majesty's high appreciation of their services. 
Ryan, on his arrival in Boston, during Pepperrell's ab- 
sence at Louisburg, sent three of the new captains on 
recruiting service, Jacobs to New York, Delegal to the 



130 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

South, and Wooster to Connecticut, and made his own 
head-quarters at Boston. His own commission was 
properly due to Colonel John Bradstreet, or to Major 
Mercer of Pepperrell's regiment, and the former was 
recommended for the office by both Pepperrell and 
Warren. But Ryan was a creature of some favorite at 
court, whose influence not only disappointed Bradstreet 
and Pepperrell, but elevated one who proved to be 
unworthy of the office. The king, however, was not 
unmindful of Pepperrell's appeal in favor of Bradstreet, 
and soon after appointed him lieutenant-governor of 
Newfoundland, he still retaining his captaincy in Pep- 
perrell's provincial regiment. He afterward became a 
very distinguished general in the Canadian war ; while 
Ryan, as will soon appear, covered himself with igno- 
miny. 

Sir William Pepperrell remained at Louisburg until 
late the following spring. The place was kept under 
martial law, and a council or court was held two or 
three days in each week for trying delinquents, Warren 
and Pepperrell acting as judges. The record of their 
court is still preserved, and is a curiosity. Among other 
complaints before the court, was one against Captain 
Piercy, who was charged by three complainants with 
drinking " Long life to the Pretender," which, at that 
time, was deemed high treason. Piercy was arraigned 
before the court, and the charge and affidavits being read 
in a solemn tone, the question was put, " what is your 
defence, Sir ? " in reply to this charge of treason, in 
drinking long life to the Pretender. " May it please your 
Honors," said the captain, " the complainants entirely 
misunderstood me. I drank " long life to the potatoes I " 
The captain's defence was deemed satisfactory. 

Lady Pepperrell would fain have gone to Sir Wilham 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 131 

to remain during his detention after the conquest, but 
on account of her feeble constitution was dissuaded 
from so dangerous an undertaking. Lady Warren 
arrived there in August with Mrs. Greene, wife of the 
secretary, and remained until the following summer. 
Sir William's letters to his family are mostly destroyed ; 
some of hers to him are still preserved. 

In November, he received at Louisburg a letter from 
Major-General Wolcott, of Connecticut, who had re- 
turned home soon after the capitulation, inquiring after 
the welfare of the troops he had left at Louisburg, and 
what share of honor he had been pleased to award for 
their services during the siege, and congratulates him 
on the marks of favor bestowed by the king, in his 
despatches to London. Sir William writes the follow- 
ing reply, which does honor to his head and heart. 

[To Major-General Wolcott.] 

Louisburg, December 10, 1745. 

Honored Sir, — By your favor of the 23d of Octo- 
ber last, I find you had received my letter of the 20th 
of September. It gives me great pleasure to hear of 
your safe arrival among your dear family, and had 
recovered your health. I desire that the Almighty will 
be graciously pleased to continue your life and health 
for a long time to come, a blessing to your king and 
country, and that you may yet be enabled to render 
still more important services. 

I thought before you left Louisburg you had seen my 
representation of the army, it being entered in the copy- 
book of my letters by my secretary, and this book was 
always open to any of my council, and was read to 
them before being sent to London. The only reasons I 
can assign for your not seeing it, are your illness at the 



132 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

time, and the confusion we were in, having no house in 
town undamaged by shot, so that we were obliged to 
sleep in wet beds. Whatever. people may think to the 
contrary, I can truly say and prove by my letters sent 
to England, that I acted according to the best of my 
ability as a common father to the army, ordering every 
regiment its proportion of duty in the camp, and that I 
reported to government alike in favor of the whole, 
making no difference between those of Massachusetts, 
Connecticut, and New Hampshire. In my letter to the 
Duke of Newcastle, a copy of which I send you here- 
with, I inclosed to him a list of all the officers in the 
campaign, and your name in said list was entered next 
to my own, and every other officer in the army accord- 
ing to his rank, and stated that they and the soldiers 
had all behaved bravely. And since the Most High, 
Holy, and Merciful God, who made us willing to leave 
our pleasant houses and families for this dangerous 
enterprise, and has been graciously wdth us and given 
us success, why should we find fault one with another ? 
If we would but eye the hand of Providence more, and 
ascribe to him, as his due, all the honor and glory, we 
should not be jealous one of another. I am greatly 
obliged to you for your congratulations, and do join 
with you in the opinion that the honor done to the head 
is done to the whole army. 

Nothing would give me more pleasure than liberty to 
visit my family, and as I am sure no other motive 
brought me here than the good of my country, so noth- 
ing else makes me willing to remain away from them. 
It has been a sickly, dying time among us. Upwards 
of four hundred brave men have died since we came 
into this city. The Almighty seems to be angry with 
us. Next Wednesday is appointed a day of fasting 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 133 

and prayer. I hope you will all lift up your hands and 
your hearts on our behalf, and I hope God will be gra- 
ciously pleased to be entreated to show us mercy. It 
has been observed that wherever there was a close 
siege for upwards of thirty days, great sickness has 
ensued. I cannot but think this is naturally a very 
healthy place, and if it please the Almighty to continue 
it in our hands, must become a place of great trade. 

Whatever command Providence may place me in, I 
shall show the same favor to those who came here from 
Connecticut, that I do to those from my own province, 
and this I have hitherto done in every particular, and I 
shall take particular care that no under officer abuses 
any of our soldiers ; for, as you justly observe, there are 
no braver nor more active men than our countrymen, 
and they deserve to be encouraged. 

I must say that this campaign has borne much upon 
my constitution, and almost worn me out. But if it 
should please Him who made us willing to come on 
this expedition to call us on some other, He can support 
and carry us through, and I hope we shall at all times 
be enabled to put our trust in Him. 

The short acquaintance I had with you sufficed to 
give me a profound respect and esteem for you, and I 
should have been glad if your health had permitted you 
to remain longer with us. I hope that ere long I shall 
be able to make you a visit, when we can talk over our 
past scenes. But if Providence should deny us this 
favor, I hope through the merits of a glorious Redeemer 
we shall meet in a happy eternity. We are much 
obliged to you for the chaplain you have sent, and your 
good advice, which I always valued and honored. You 
may remember what a hurry you left me in, which still 
continues, so that I have not the time to write to my 

12 



134 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

friends as fully and as often as I wish. I hope they will 
excuse me. I have inclosed you a copy of the Dake of 
Newcastle's letter to me, as likewise of one from the 
Lords of the Admiralty, being the only public letters 
which I have received. You may see plainly by them 
that I never made any difference in mentioning one Prov- 
ince more than another, or if my word is disputed, the 
copies of my letters may be had from each of their 
offices. 

I have written several private letters to my friends in 
England, four of whom are Parliament men. But the 
most I said in them was, that the charges I hoped 
would be borne by his Majesty, and that the provinces 
of the Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut, and New 
Hampshire, would be repaid w^hat they had disbursed 
on this expedition. I did say in these letters that Mas- 
sachusetts had been at the greatest part of the charges, 
which must be allowed by all. 

Be pleased to give my service to all inquiring friends, 
but more particularly to those that were here with us on 
this expedition, whom I shall always value and honor. 
I am, with best respects, Dear Sir, 

Your affectionate friend, and most humble servant, 

W. P. 

The sickness and mortality above noticed, continued 
for some time. From the last of November, 1745, to 
the 28th January, 1746, five hundred and sixty-one men 
were buried from the army, and at the latter date eleven 
hundred were on the sick list. Sir William then writes, 
" we flatter ourselves, from the burials of three or four 
days past, amounting to only three, four, or five a day, 
which at one time were from fourteen to twenty-seven 
per day, that the distemper abates. But it has reduced 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 135 

US to less than one thousand men capable of doing 

duty." 

The provincials were detained at Louisburg much 
longer than was anticipated. Two regiments were 
ordered there from Gibraltar in the autumn, and would 
have arrived in season, but for adverse winds, which 
compelled the ships to run south to Virginia, where 
they remained until the opening of spring. Early in 
April they arrived, and took the place of the provin- 
cials, who were permitted to return home. 

When the expedition against Louisburg was pro- 
jected, Rhode Island entered heartily into it, and raised 
three companies of one hundred men each, paid them 
more liberally than any colony, and emitted three thou- 
sand seven hundred and fifty pounds new tenor for the 
purpose, to be paid by a tax on ratable polls and estates 
in 1750, 1751, and 1752. But the troops failed of 
reaching Boston in season to embark with Pepperrell. 
They, however, proceeded early in July, and proved a 
valuable reinforcement in preserving the conquest, the 
other troops being worn down with fatigue and sick- 
ness. 

Admiral Warren on receiving his commission as 
governor, and Mr. Warburton's as lieutenant-governor, 
was saluted from the cannon of the fort, and the army 
being mustered he addressed them the following kind 
farewell, and at the close of it ordered a hogshead of 
rum to be dealt out to them as a parting treat. 

April 2, 1746. 

Gentlemen, — It is with very great pleasure I have 
called you together at this time, because I have it now 
in my power to gratify you in what you have so long 
and earnestly wished for and desired ; I mean to return 



136 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

to your families and settlements, after the great fatigues 
you have gone through, both in the reduction and pro- 
tection of this valuable acquisition. 

Your signal services upon this occasion shall never be 
forgot by me, and you may be assured I will (as indeed 
Sir William Pepperrell and I have already done, by let- 
ters from hence) in person, whenever I return to Great 
Britain, represent your services, and the importance of 
this conquest to his Majesty and the ministry, in the 
truest light. 

By the early care taken in the sending troops, ships 
of war, and stores of all kinds for the protection of this 
garrison, it appears that our mother country is thor- 
oughly apprised of its value ; and the consequences of 
it to the colonies you are all well acquainted with. 

In your return. Governor Shirley has strongly recom- 
mended your landing in the^ eastern frontiers of New 
England, which have been annoyed by some small par- 
ties of the enemy Indians. This will give such a coun- 
tenance to the out-settlements as cannot fail of hav- 
ing a very good effect ; and as I am informed many of 
you have settlements and families upon the frontiers, I 
flatter myself this will be agreeable to you, especially 
as it will lay your posterity, to the latest generations, 
under the greatest obligations to you. Brigadier Waldo 
will go with you, and proper provision of all kinds will 
be made for you. 

I have seen with great concern how much the officers 
and. men have been crowded in their houses, since the 
arrival of the troops to relieve them, to prevent which 
as much as possible, we have kept one of the regiments 
on board the transports, till we can prepare quarters for 
them in the hospital, which we are under the necessity 
of converting into a barrack ; when that is done, and 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 137 

new barracks bnilt, (the materials for which are hourly 
expected,) I hope there will be room to give houses to 
all such people as shall choose to settle in this place, 
and to allow to such of the troops as are married, 
proper conveniences out of the barracks. 

Any persons who have an inclination to remain here 
as inhabitants, or to enlist into his Majesty's service, 
may depend upon my protection, and the former shall 
always be at free liberty to leave this place whenever 
they please ; and as nothing can contribute more to the 
welfare of any government and people than a religious 
discharge of their duty, and a benevolent and brotherly 
behavior to each other, I in the most earnest manner 
recommend this, gentlemen, to you all, that as we are 
one people under the best of kings and happiest of 
governments, we continue in one mind, doing all the 
good offices in our power for each other. 

On Wednesday next we shall be able to land some 
more of the Gibraltar troops, who, with those that are 
enlisted into the American regiments, will mount all 
the guards, and give you an opportunity to get your- 
selves ready to embark on board the vessels now pre- 
paring for you. 

I take this opportunity to acquaint you that though I 
have received my commission as governor of this gar- 
rison, and the territories thereupon depending, and 
Colonel Warburton has his as lieutenant-governor, 
and as such we are both to be obeyed; but no instruc- 
tions are yet come to our hands, but we may daily 
expect them, which I hope will enable us to grant the 
houses and lands of this conquest to his Majesty's sub- 
jects, in the distribution of which you may depend, 
gentlemen, that the greatest regard shall be shown to 
you who conquered them. 

12* 



138 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

I sincerely wish you all an happy meeting with your 
families and friends, and shall ever think it the greatest 
happiness that can attend me, to have power equal to 
my inclination to serve every officer and soldier that 
has been in the least degree instrumental in the reduc- 
tion of this garrison to his Majesty's obedience ; the 
securing which during the course of a long and severe 
winter, in which you suffered the greatest hardships, 
and many brave men perished, till the arrival of his 
Majesty's troops, highly merits the favor of your king 
and country, which I hope will be alway shown you. 

You are very happy, gentlemen, in the governors and 
legislators of your different provinces, who in all their 
letters to Sir William Pepperrell and myself, express the 
greatest concern at the mortality that raged among you 
last winter, and that they had it not in their power to 
keep their faith with you, by relieving you so soon as 
you expected after the reduction of this place ; and 
such indeed was their care for you, that had not the 
two regiments from Gibraltar happily arrived, nor the 
levies gone on so well as they have done for the Ameri- 
can regiments, both here and in the colonies, yet they 
were determined at any expense to raise men this 
spring to relieve you. 

When the two American regiments are complete, 
which I hope will be soon, I think with those we have 
from Gibraltar, who have been long used to garrison 
duty, and while we have so strong a sea force, as that 
is already arrived and daily expected, under the chief 
command of Admiral Townsend, (for while he remains 
I have only the second at sea,) who has in many in- 
stances distinguished himself in his country's service as 
a good and experienced officer, we need not fear the 
power of France, but should their vanity lead them to 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 139 

make any attack upon us, I am persuaded the same 

spirit that induced you to make this conquest, will 

prompt you to protect it. 

P. Warren. 

The legislature of Massachusetts voted a congratu- 
latory address to Pepperrell and his officers and soldiers, 
tendering them grateful acknowledgments for the im- 
portant services they had rendered ; and also to Admiral 
Warren and his officers and men for their hearty and 
successful cooperation. 

[Pepperrell's Reply.] 

Louisburg, April 5, 1746. 

Gentlemen, — I am extremely obliged to the Honor- 
able Council and House of Representatives of the 
province of the Massachusetts Bay, for their congratu- 
lation and compliments to me on the happy issue of 
the expedition against this place ; and for his Majesty's 
most gracious approbation of my services therein, which 
I had the honor of receiving from you the 2d instant. 
Next to the consciousness of my having engaged in the 
important enterprise out of zeal for his Majesty's service 
and the welfare of my country, and that I have made it 
my constant aim to discharge the trust reposed in me 
with fidelity, nothing can give me a more sincere and 
lasting pleasure than my Royal Master's approbation, 
and my country's kind acceptance of my services. 

May the Lord of Hosts, who has given us the victory, 
ever defend and prosper this valuable acquisition, and 
grant that it may effectually answer the noble purposes 
for which our country was animated to attempt its con- 
quest, in the prosecution of which the generous concur- 
rence of the province of the Massachusetts Bay with 



140 LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

his Excellency Governor Shirley's wise counsels and 
indefatigable application had so great a share ; and 
may the happy consequences of our success be exten- 
sive as its fame, and lasting as the honor due to the 
heroic resolution and exemplary bravery of the officers 
and soldiers, whom I shall always esteem it my great 
honor to have commanded. 

It is with pleasure that I observe my country's grati- 
tude for the good services and assistance of the brave 
and worthy Admiral Warren, whose singular vigilance 
and good conduct rendered his having the direction of 
his Majesty's ships employed against this place pecu- 
liarly happy; and I flatter myself that the harmony 
which has subsisted between us in the prosecution of 
his Majesty's service, has also had an happy effect ; and 
I esteem it an auspicious aspect of Divine Providence 
upon this place, that a gentleman so peculiarly qualified 
and disposed to promote its prosperity, is appointed by 
his Majesty to the government of it. 

As 1 shall ever retain a most grateful sense of the 
many honors I have received from my country, nothing 
will give me greater pleasure than any opportunity fur- 
ther to approve myself a true friend to its interest and 
prosperity ; to which, if the honor and command con- 
ferred on me by his Majesty can any way contribute, it 

will enhance their value. 

Wm. Pepperrell. 

Warren and Pepperrell embarked at Louisburg in the 
Chester, Captain Spry, leaving the fortress under the 
command of Commodore Charles Knowles, and arrived 
in Boston about the 1st of June. They were received 
with a salute of cannon at the castle in the afternoon, 
and entertained by the governor. They arrived in Bos- 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 141 

ton at 5 P.M., and were saluted by all the ships of war 
and town batteries. Upon their landing at Long Wharf, 
his Majesty's Council and the House of Representa- 
tives received them, and they all were escorted by His 
Excellency's company of cadets to the council chamber. 
It being training day for the Boston regiment, the sol- 
diers were drawn up in two lines in King's (now State) 
street, by his Excellency's orders, and the officers paid 
the standing salute to the three, namely, Shirley, Pep- 
perrell, and Warren. As they passed, the street, win- 
dows, doors, and balconies were crowded, and the regi- 
ment fired three volleys, and gave three hurrahs, in 
which the whole populace joined. 

Sir William soon after took his seat at the council 
board, to which he was reelected president. The House 
of Representatives, then in session, being informed that 
he and Admiral Warren were in the council chamber, 
went thither, when the speaker addressed them in the 
following manner: — 

" The House of Representatives of this Prov- 
ince, have a high sense of the services you have 
done for His Majesty's subjects in general, and for the 
people of New England in particular ; and it is with 
the greatest pleasure they embrace this happy opportu- 
tunity of acknowledging it. 

In their name, and by their order, T congratulate you 
on your safe arrival in the province, and most heartily 
bid you welcome." 

To which Admiral Warren replied : — 

" Mr. Speaker, — I am obliged to this honorable 
House for the great respect they have shown me. They 
may depend upon my zeal and service while I live, for 
the colonies in general, and this province in partic- 
ular." 



142 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Sir William replied as follows : — 

" Mr. Speaker, — I am heartily obliged to the honor- 
able house for the respect they have shown me, and I 
shall be always ready to risk my life and fortune for the 
good of my dear native country." 

Soon after the above ceremony Admiral Warren left 
Boston for England, where he was employed in the 
British Channel. 

On the 4th of July, Sir William, attended by divers 
officers and gentlemen, set out for his seat in Kittery. 
He was met at Lynn by a troop of horse and enter- 
tained, and was there received by a company of gentle- 
men and conducted to Salem ; on entering which, he 
was saluted with cannon, and ringing of bells, and con- 
ducted to the town hall to partake of a magnificent 
entertainment. After dinner the royal healths were 
drank. Governor Shirley's, Sir William's, Admiral 
Warren's, Brigadier Waldo's, and all the officers and 
men at the siege of Cape Breton ; at each health the 
cannon were fired, and a treble discharge made by the 
troop of horse. On leaving Beverly ferry a cavalcade 
met him from Ipswich and Newbury, and conducted 
him to the latter place, where his arrival, at eleven 
o'clock at night, was announced by a salute from the 
town cannon and by various fireworks, and the whole 
party were entertained with an elegant supper by Hon. 
Major Greenleaf. Next morning at ten, he crossed the 
Merrimac River, attended by the high sheriff and a 
cavalcade from the county of York. He was attended 
from Hampton to Portsmouth by his Majesty's council 
of New Hampshire, the high sheriff, and numerous 
officers civil and military, with many other gentlemen, 
and two companies of horse. On entering Portsmouth 
a troop of horse led the van, followed by officers of 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 143 

Louisburg with music and colors flying, then Sir 
William in a barouche, then the council, sheriff, and a 
long train of gentlemen, and a troop of horse brought 
up the rear. He was conducted to the governor's 
house to dine, and was saluted on his departure in the 
evening, as he had been on his arrival, by artillery, and 
was conveyed in the castle barge to his own house at 
Kittery. 

The histories hitherto published of the expedition of 
1745 are generally based upon the one by Dr. Belknap, 
and present a brief sketch well drawn, and in the main 
correct ; but the writers have dwelt less upon the trials, 
perplexities, and discouragements of Sir William than 
is necessary in order for a right appreciation of his 
character. We might, like those authors, have con- 
densed the foregoing pages, and rendered the story far 
more acceptable and interesting to the majority of 
readers, but it would have been an unfaithful portrait 
of the man. We might have rendered the narrative 
less tedious by arranging the incidents in a more con- 
nected form, rather than by letters and extracts ; but 
have preferred to present the reader the means of form- 
ing his own opinions from original sources, unbiased by 
our own partiality or prejudice. 

We have dwelt longer on the siege and reduction of 
Louisburg than the brief period of time it occupied of 
Sir William's whole life would seem to justify. But it 
is to be remembered that this achievement was the main 
pillar of his fame, and inscribed his name on the endur- 
ing page of history. Here it was, too, that the promi- 
nent traits of his character present themselves in bold 
relief; his spirit for daring enterprise, his prudence, pa- 
tience, forbearance, perseverance, self-devotion, patriot- 
ism, and reliance on Divine aid, shone conspicuously. 



144 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

and seemed to rise and increase in proportion to the 
increasing demand for their exercise. 

Here, too, it was that the hardy sons of New England 
took their first lessons in military service, preparatory to 
the grand drama of the E/evolution, soon to follow. The 
same old drums that marched into Louisburg, rallied 
the troops in their march to Bunker's Hill ; and the 
same Colonel Gridley who planned Pepperrell's bat- 
teries, marked and laid out the one where General 
Warren fell, — and when Gage was erecting breast- 
works across Boston Neck, the provincial troops sneer- 
ingly remarked that his mud walls were nothing com- 
pared with the stone walls of old Louisburg. Thus the 
confidence and self-reliance its recollections inspired, 
proved a favorable preparation for the Revolutionary 
struggle, while the three years' delay of reimbursements, 
the refusal to give them a share of the prize money, and 
the occasional disparaging taunts of individuals, under- 
rating their services, fired them with the indignation 
requisite to bring their early experience into action, as 
soon as colonial oppression called for their services. 
Thus, General Wooster, who commanded a company 
under Pepperrell, fell mortally wounded at Norwalk; 
Thornton of New Hampshire, signed the Declaration 
of Independence ; and Nixon, Whiting, Colonel Gridley, 
the engineer, and many other distinguished officers 
and men of the continental army, had served with 
Pepperrell at Louisburg. Mr. Hartwell said, in the 
House of Commons, in 1775, that the colonists " took 
Louisburg from the French single-handed, without 
any European assistance, — as mettled an enterprise 
as any in our history, — an everlasting memorial to 
the zeal, courage, and perseverance of the troops of 
New England." " The conquest of Louisburg," says 



SIEGE AND CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 145 

Smollett, " was the most important achievement of the 
war of 1744," and it is remarked in the Universal His- 
tory, that " Neiv England gave peace to Europe by rais- 
ings armings ^'^^d transporting four thousand menj'' whose 
success ^'proved an equivalent for all the successes of the 
French upon the continentJ^ 

In concluding this brief sketch of the comparative 
actual services performed by the army and fleet, it must 
be conceded that the land forces, in the moral aspect 
of their deeds, won imperishable fame. Warren was 
bred to arms ; his home was on the deep, and his offi- 
cers and men had dedicated and trained their energies, 
body and mind, for deadly strife, and were now in their 
chosen element, and in the ordinary line of their duty. 
Not so with the army. Pepperrell, a wealthy merchant, 
unaccustomed to the sea, with no expectation of mili- 
tary preferment to incite him, obeys the call of his 
countrymen, leaves all the comforts and endeared 
attractions of home and his peaceful occupations, to 
brave the dangers of an ice-bound coast, and the fa- 
tigues, dangers, and responsibilities of a perilous enter- 
prise of doubtful success, — yet sure to be disastrous to 
the colonies and to his own fame in the event of failure : 
and he is followed by four thousand farmers, mechanics, 
and fishermen, — impelled by no forced levy or press- 
gang, but voluntarily shouldering their firelocks and 
girding themselves for a deadly conflict, and patiently 
enduring the hardships and toil of a seven weeks' siege, 
— surely, this presents a spectacle of glowing patriotism 
and self-devotion far transcending the deeds of Warren 
and his crews. 

13 



CHAPTER VII. 

AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 

The French government was exceedingly exasperated 
at the audacity of the provincial troops in capturing 
their strongest fortress in America, and immediately 
prepared a large force for its recovery, and for the 
punishment of the New Englanders, by sacking and 
destroying their principal seaports. The force consisted 
of forty large ships of war, besides transports, under the 
command of the Duke D'Anville, fitted out at Brest, 
and bringing three thousand to four thousand regular 
troops, " the most powerful armament that had ever 
been sent into America." 

Colonel Bradstreet writes to Sir William from Louis- 
burg : — " We have been up in arms about the 
Brest fleet's expected arrival here. Since then, 1746.' 
we learn that there are five frigates ninety leagues 
up the St. Lawrence gulf, at Gaspee, and some trans- 
ports, with four thousand Canadian French and In- 
dians, waiting the arrival of the Brest fleet, and had 
sent a sloop to a certain latitude to meet it, and return 
with intelligence to Gaspee, on which they are to join 
for the attack on Louisburg. The Vigilant has gone 
up there in order to destroy them." 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 147 

Intelligence reached Boston of the impending danger, 
which alarmed the colony and threw it into the utmost 
consternation. In a few days six thousand four hun- 
dred of the inland militia marched into Boston ; to 
whose assistance six thousand men were, on the first 
notice, to march from Connecticut. The old forts on 
the sea-coast were repaired, new forts erected, and 
military guards appointed. The country was kept in 
a state of alarm and anxiety for six weeks. 

Sir William, who still retained the command of the 
western regiment of militia in Maine, on the announce- 
ment of approaching danger, issued his orders to the 
captains to muster their companies and examine their 
accoutrements, and hold themselves ready to march at 
a moment's warning. At the same time he ordered 
sentinels to be constantly on the look-out from com- 
manding heights, to give the signal of approaching 
fleets. 

At length the alarm was allayed by intelligence that 
the enemy was crippled by tempest and shipwreck ; 
that an expected junction of M. Conflans with three 
ships of the line and a frigate from Hispaniola had 
failed ; that pestilential fevers had prevailed among the 
French troops, and had destroyed two thousand of 
them. Intercepted letters which conveyed intelligence 
that an English fleet was approaching, disconcerted 
them. D'Anville's anxiety produced sudden death, and 
D'Estournelle, next in command, in extreme agitation, 
fell on his sword, their fleet was overtaken and dis- 
persed by tempest, and the vessels returned singly to 
France. Thus ended the expedition that threatened 
desolation to the seaports of New England. A more 
remarkable instance of preservation seldom occurs. 
" When man is made the instrument of averting 



148 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

calamity, the Divine agency ought still to be acknowl- 
edged ; but this was averted without human power." 

The Canadian troops of French and Indians that 
were to join D'Anville's forces, on seeing them depart, 
retired to Minas near Pictou. Governor Shirley sent a 
body of troops in the winter, under Colonel Arthur 
Noble, who had commanded a regiment at the con- 
quest of Louisburg with PepperrelL* These were 
defeated, having sixty killed, including the colonel, and 
fifty wounded, and the remainder captured. It was an 
injudicious project of the governor. But the success 
of the expedition against Louisburg excited his ambi- 
tion, and prompted him to attempt further conquests. 
Soon after its surrender, he consulted Warren and 
Pepperrell on the subject of an expedition against 
Canada, and their opinions according with his own, he 
wrote from thence, in a pressing manner, to the British 
ministry. His plans were approved, and in the spring 
following the Duke of Newcastle, Secretary of State, 
wrote to all the governors of the colonies, as far south 
as Virginia, to raise men for the said expedition. To 
Shirley and Pepperrell he sent orders to fill up their 
regiments for garrison duty at Louisburg, and to do 
their utmost to promote his designs. His plan of oper- 
ations was, that a squadron of ships of war, under the 
command of Admiral Warren, and a body of land 
forces under Lieutenant- General St. Clair, should be 
sent from England against Canada ; that the troops 
raised in New England should join the British fleet and 
army at Louisburg, and proceed up the river St. Law- 
rence, and those at New York and the other colonies at 
the southward should assemble at Albany, and march 

* The town of Nobleboro' in Maine, was named after him. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 149 

against Crown Point and Montreal. The colonies, 
pleased with the measure, readily furnished their quotas 
of men. 

Mr. Sparhawk, son-in-law of Sir William, 
took his seat in the legislature this year, as rep- 
resentative elect from the town of Kittery. Soon after 
his arrival in Boston he wrote to Andrew Pepperrell, 

his brother-in-law, at Kittery : " The expedition 

JunG 2 
against Canada is at last agreed upon by the 

General Court, and being honored with a seat in the 

committee to consider the expediency of it, etc., I 

have been confined day and night almost ever since I 

came to town, so that instead of having a little respite 

by my tour from the fatigues of business, I have been 

in a greater hurry than when at home. I now have the 

utmost difficulty in finding time to write. 

" There are five battalions, beside Lieutenant- General 
Frampton's regiment, daily expected from Great Britain 
for the expedition, which are to be joined by the two 
Gibraltar regiments at Louisburg, which, with the 
recruits that are to be levied in North America, are to 
be our land force, and to be commanded by Lieutenant- 
General St. Clair. The Americans go by land (except 
what are raised in New England) to Canada, under 
Lieutenant-Governor Gooch, now brigadier-general. 
Admiral Wan-en commands by sea. The governor's 
and your father's regiments are to defend Cape Breton. 
I rejoice that he (your father) is excused from a concern 
in this expedition, and that he is hourly expected here. 
The General Court have voted three thousand men for 
it. If you have any small arms, I believe the govern- 
ment must want them, and you may sell them at a 
good price." 

But the expedition against Canada after all was 

13* 



150 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

abandoned for the season, no general to command nor 
orders arrived from England during the whole summer. 
Sir William and others finally concluded that the 
season was too far advanced to expect them. 

Colonel John Bradstreet remained in command of a 
provincial regiment at Louisburg after the siege, until 
he was appointed by the king lieutenant-governor of 
Newfoundland. This was a better situation than that 
of provincial colonel, but having a martial turn of mind 
and a thirst for military fame, he strove for a commis- 
sion in the regular army. Through his brother-in-law 
Captain Aldridge, he made proposals to Sir William to 
purchase his commission. The fact is here referred to, 
as showing how commissions were bought and sold in 
the British army, and what was the estimated value of 
Colonel Pepperrell's commission at this time. Brad- 
street writes to Pepperrell : — 

Captain Aldridge tells me you desired I 
March, ^ould write and make an offer of what I would 

1747. 

give. In the first place it requires good interest 
at court and is attended with considerable expense, and 
to be kept quite a secret to get such a thing done, so 
that I would agree to pay you at the rate of ten years' 
purchase, and you to have all the perquisites of the 
regiment, during its standing, or your life, which will 
make two thousand pounds sterling, which money shall 
be deposited in any bank in England, to be delivered 
as soon as the commission is made out, and further, 
that I will be at all the cost, etc., etc. 

The rank as colonel is so much below what the 
iking has been pleased to give you already, and as I 
apprehend you do not intend to stick by the army, to 
head a regiment in some other part of the world, that 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 151 

it will not be worth your while to keep this, when you 
can get more than an equivalent for it, and be freed 
from all the plague and trouble. For my own part I 
will be ingenuous to you. The rank is what I want, 
and as my friends will then have it more in their 
power to serve me, notwithstanding it is the youngest 
regiment. And I will further give you security for 
receiving all the perquisites, and will make as much as 
an honest man can for you. 

I have nothing more to add than that all the inhab- 
itants out of town, as well as in town, are taxed I may 
say enormously for house rent. 

The following letter of Sir William to his friend 
Major- General Wolcott of Connecticut, refers, among 
other matters, to the contemplated expedition against 
Canada, and requests his aid in raising men for his 
regiment : — 

Kittery, August 19, 1746. 

Sir, — Your favor of the 7th of July last I received 
and am greatly obliged to you for the readiness you 
show to maintain our acquaintance, and I assure you 
it would have given me equal pleasure, as you mention 
it would you, to have met you and paid my respects to 
you in person, and since you don't incline to take 
a journey here, I have thoughts of paying you a visit in 
Connecticut, if I can get my hurry of business over. 
I observe you write you are to bear no part in the 
expedition against Canada. I take it that that part of 
your letter is, you don't go in person, but I do believe 
you will bear a great part in encouraging the men in 
so good an undertaking ; for if we can but rout out of 
America that troublesome enemy the French, I hope 



152 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

we shall be a happy people. His Grace the Duke of 
Newcastle writes on the 19th of April last, that the two 
regiments commanded by Governor Shirley and myself, 
were to garrison Louisburg, and that he was com- 
manded by his Majesty to recommend it to us to use 
the utmost diligence in completing the two regiments 
to the highest establishment for that purpose, and 
furthermore it was expected that the several governors 
in the colonies would assist therein, and that I would 
do all in my power for the success of an expedition 
against Canada, which desire I look upon it to be my 
indispensable duty to comply with, by every means in 
my power. It has been a very great grief to me that 
those brave officers and soldiers with us on the expedi- 
tion against Cape Breton have not been better paid. 
My desire is to go to England next spring. As to the 
commissions sent to me blank, I am sure I made no 
difference between the men raised in one government 
or in another who were in the expedition, and shall not 
in any future favors that lie in my power. You are 
sensible that Capt. Wooster has a commission for cap- 
tain in my regiment, and Mr. Nathan Whiting, who, I 
understand you have a particular value for, will have a 
commission also ; and in New Hampshire Capt. Mason 
is appointed a captain in my regiment ; and to Colonel 
Moore's nephew I have given an ensign's commission. 
I am glad Connecticut has done so much towards 
raising men for my regiment, and I hope you will still 
continue your good offices to help complete the same. 
I should esteem it as a particular favor if you would be 
pleased to make my compliments to all those brave 
officers that served with us in the last campaign, and 
in particular to Colonel Burr, Colonel Lathrop, and 
Colonel Guthridge. I shall be glad to serve yourself 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 153 

or any friend of yours ; and am, with great esteem and 
respect, Your most humble servant, 

W. P. 

He wi'ites to General Waldo, one of the council, 
from Kittery : — 

" I am concerned about the province of 
Maine; am afraid it will be lost if the war ,P?\^' 

. . 174b. 

holds out long, without there is some care taken 
of it. 

" I should think it would now be a good time 
to build a fort at Penobscot ; pray think of it, and put 
it forward if you are of that opinion. I was in hopes 
you would have called here on your way to Boston. I 
should be glad to hear from you, and if the General 
Court is likely to sit any length of time, and you think 
I can be of service, although I am not well, yet will 
endeavor to come to Boston." 

The building of a fort at Penobscot was a favorite 
measure with Pepperrell, as a security against the 
inroads of the eastern Indians in time of war. It was 
delayed until the year of his decease, and when at last 
accomplished by Governor Pownall, it proved to be of 
great service to Maine. 

In August, 1746, Governor Knowles writes to Sir 
William twice, to send his officers, particularly Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Ryan, immediately to Louisburg, as 
Major Mercer then in command needed them. Sir 
William replies : " I have given particular orders to 
Lieutenant- Colonel Ryan and other officers that are 
not immediately employed in recruiting, to repair to 
Louisburg, and hope they will soon be there." 

Governor Knowles writes soon after in respect to his 



154 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

discipline : " When I tell you that several days pass 
without one man's being confined by guard, you will 
think I have effected wonders, but such is the conquest 
I have made over Rum, and at which I rejoice not 
a little." Sir William replies : " I sincerely congratu- 
late you upon your conquest as to the article Rum, 
which must be very happy in its consequences. 
Although your Excellency remarks that you find 
no season for pleasure at Louisburg, I cannot but 
think that the good effects of your discipline in the 
garrison, and the fact that you have placed it in such a 
posture for defence as will enable you to receive a visit 
from Monsieur, must, in retired hours, give you no small 
degree of satisfaction." 

Colonel Ryan, on his arrival at Louisburg, presented 
to Governor Knowles his own commission and those of 
the subaltern officers, which were sent by him from the 
war office in London. It soon appeared that all was 
not right, some of the commissions of lieutenant had 
been erased. Governor Knowles writes to Sir Wil- 
liam : — 

Louisburg, December 24, 1746. 

Sir, — I desired you some time ago to send down 
the commissions for your officers here, which I am 
sorry to observe to you are not yet all arrived, and 
several of those which are come have erasures in the 
names and dates, which gives discontent. A commis- 
sion for Lieutenant Watmough, filled up in England 
by Colonel Ryan, was antedated, and made senior to 
Lieutenant Gordon, which occasioned a long debate, 
and particularly as Mr. Watmough's name was not on 
the list of officers delivered from the war office to your 
agent. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 155 

It has ever been esteemed a high favor to be intrusted 
with the filling up of blank commissions, and I must 
confess it appears to me something strange that a lieu- 
tenant-colonel of a regiment in England should have 
the power to fill one up, and that that commission 
should not be entered either in the war-office or with 
the commissary of the musters. However, to appease 
my astonishment at that, I am given to understand 
Colonel Ryan is still possessed of a blank commission 
for a captain, in case of accidents, which fills me with 
greater wonder. You know best. Sir, what commis- 
sions you have given him ; but you will excuse me for 
saying I won't admit of his using that authority in this 
garrison whilst I am governor, without its being signi- 
fied to me by the secretary of state to be his Majesty's 
pleasure, nor will I suffer any alteration to be made in 
the muster-rolls or victualling-lists whatever; let the 
erasures be for whom they will in the commissions. 
I am, Sir, your most humble servant, 

Charles Knowles. 

P. S. As you have given Captain Jacobs leave to go 
home without my approbation, I hope you will send 
the rest of the officers down immediately to their 
respective duties, as I requested some time ago, except 
such as are absolutely necessary for recruiting, and I 
desire to have a list of the names of those, etc. 

Sir William replies : — "As to the commis- 
sions for the officers in the regiment I have the ^-j^-^^ ' 
honor to command, I sent every one of them to 
Louisburg last summer, except Lieutenant Watkins's^, 
who was recruiting at Newfoundland. Lieutenant 
Glazier has his, and expected to leave in the Mermaid. 



156 , LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

" When I received the blank commissions from Col- 
onel Ryan, it appeared to me that there had been some 
erasures in the names. I asked him the reason of it, and 
he told me it was done before he took them out of the 
war office. I solemnly declare I never made the least 
erasure in any of them. All that came blank to me I 
filled up with my own hand, excepting that of ensign 
for Robert White. I never saw Lieutenant Watmough, 
nor his commission. 

" I join with your Excellency that it is a high favor 
to be intrusted with the filling up of blank commis- 
sions, and he that makes a breach of that trust ought to 
be condemned. All the blank ones I received were de- 
livered me by Colonel Ryan, not inclosed in a packet, 
but loose. Sir William Yonge does not mention the 
number of blank commissions sent me to fill up. In- 
closed you have an extract from his letter relating to 
the commissions. 

" His Grace the Duke of Newcastle wrote me on the 
11th of September, 1745, viz. : — ' You will see that his 
Majesty has been pleased to nominate the field officers, 
five captains, the captain-lieutenant, nine lieutenants, 
and five ensigns, to your regiment ; and to sign blank 
commissions for two captains, eleven lieutenants, and 
four ensigns, which will be transmitted to you herewith, 
and which are to be filled up by you with the names of 
such gentlemen as have distinguished themselves in the 
late expedition, or as you shall think otherwise the best 
qualified for his Majesty's service.' And in another let- 
ter from his Grace, of the 9th April, 1746, which I 
showed your Excellency at Louisburg, he writes : — 
* I am commanded by his Majesty to recommend it to 
you, in a particular manner, (as I also do to Mr. Shir- 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 157 

ley,) to use the utmost diligence in completing your 
regiment to the highest establishment for that purpose ; 
and in order to make it the more practicable and easy 
for you to comply with his Majesty's directions in this 
respect, the king has been pleased to command me to 
acquaint you that his Majesty will accept such recom- 
mendations as you shall make of persons to succeed to 
the commissions that shall at any time become vacant 
in your regiment.' 

Colonel Ryan delivered me but one captain's com- 
mission, eleven lieutenants', and four ensigns' ; the other 
captain's commission I demanded of him, and he told 
me it was with the commissions that were filled up in 
England for the officers then at Louisburg, and with his 
other papers was put on board a vessel and could not 
be got at, and that he would send it to me, which he 
has not yet done. 

As for my giving any officer leave to go from his 
post at Louisburg, I never designed any such thing with- 
out your approbation ; neither should I have given leave 
to Captain Jacobs, had it not been for his ill health, and 
the importunity of Admiral Warren, who promised to 
apologize to your Excellency for the act. 

I hope every officer in these parts, belonging to my 
regiment, will be at Louisburg by the time you receive 
this, excepting Captain Samuel Gardner, recruiting in 
the province of Massachusetts, Lieutenant Edmund 
Dwight and Lieutenant Robert Mackinen in Pennsyl- 
vania, having sent orders to all the others to hasten to 
their post at Louisburg, with what men they have en- 
listed, and these shall soon be sent after them. 

May I request this favor of your Excellency, that 
you would be pleased, after you have read the inclosed 

14 



158 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

to Colonel Ryan, to order it to be sealed and delivered 
to him, and to receive the captain's commission, and 
bring it with you to New England, where I hope to 
have an opportunity to wait on you." 

Soon after he writes again: — "Having been in- 
formed that you have directed Captain Gayton of his 
Majesty's ship Mermaid to sail for Louisburg, in order 
to wait on you to New England, I beg leave to wish 
you a safe and agreeable passage, and to give you an 
invitation to my house on your way to Boston, where I 
would endeavor to make such time as your Excellency 
may be pleased to favor me with, as pleasant to you as 
may be in my power ; and if you should incline to see 
the country between this and Boston, the roads are such 
as would admit of your having a pleasant journey, and 
I have a chaise and pair at your service." 

Sir William thanks Colonel Bradstreet for 

17 AQ ' notifying him of slanders circulated at Louis- 
burg, in reply to wiiich he says : " It having 
been told me that the commissions sent blank for the 
subalterns were a perquisite to colonels, until the corps of 
the New England forces was altered, which I think was 
some time in May last ; my answer was that if it was my 
due, I ought to have it ; if otherwise, I did not desire it; 
and I heard that the other regiment acted accordingly. 
Some of the commissions, when they were delivered 
me by the lieutenant-colonel, had been erased. I asked 
him the reason of it, and he told me it was done in the 
secretary of war's office, before they were delivered to 
him. As to my part I never erased them, but only 
filled them." 

Complaint was sent against Colonel Ryan by Gover- 
nor Knowles to the secretary of war, together with the 

dep.osition of Robert Webb, an ensign in Sir William's 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 159 

regiment, who testifies that he gave Lieutenant- Colonel 
Ryan, late of said regiment, the sum of two hundred 
guineas for his commission of ensign of a company of 
foot in the said regiment, and that the said Ryan told 
this deponent that he bought the said commission of 
Sir William Pepperrell. 

Ryan continued in the command of the regiment, 
under Pepperrell, until he was arrested in the summer 
of 1747 ; but his unfitness for the office will appear 
from the following letter, written by Colonel Bradstreet 
to Sir William : — 

Louisburg, March 19, 1747. 

Dear Sir, — I am sorry to tell you that ever since 
the arrival of your lieutenant-colonel, your regiment has 
not been one hour at rest. Such disputes between him 
and the officers are surprising, and he in the wrong in 
every one. They have worked him so now that he has 
taken to his bed, and is determined, since the gov- 
ernor will not let him go to Old England or New to 
settle about the regiment's bills, that he will die, which, 
if he keeps his word, he will do well, for then he will 
rid the world of a r — and a fool. He is as gi*eat a 
novice in the service as one of the common soldiers, and 
I will pronounce that whilst he commands a regiment, 
and suppose it complete and composed of the best 
troops in his Majesty's service, that in two years it 
would dwindle to nothing. Your major and he are 
much out, on account of the major's having leave to go 
to England soon, and that he cannot. As I doubt not 
of their sending you the proper returns of the regiment 
at least, shall say nothing on that head ; but would just 
mention to you that it would not be amiss to give 
Mr. Sparhawk a hint how he writes to Ryan as well 



160 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

as yourself, for he is made up of nothing but low 
villany. 

The whole matter of selling Ensign Webb's commis- 
sion, and of erasing the name of a lieutenant and insert- 
ing Watmough's, being laid before the secretary of war, 
he ordered Ryan to be tried by a court-martial, and 
being found guilty, he was, in the autumn of 1747, 
dismissed the service. 

Sir William then brought an action against him for 
defamation, in saying he had bought of Sir William 
Ensign Webb's commission, also another suit for re- 
cruiting-money advanced him, and unaccounted for. 
The result of these suits will appear hereafter. 

The Reverend Stephen Williams, of Longmeadow, 
was in the expedition at Louisburg, as chaplain, and 
was greatly esteemed and respected by Sir William for 
his high order of talents and fervent piety. On hearing 
that an expedition to Canada was contemplat- 
^74g ' ed, he wrote a request that he might be per- 
mitted to accompany the baronet, who replies : — 
Feb. 4, « I am greatly obliged to you for your kind 
^'^^'^' expressions. If the Almighty should ever call 
me into the service of my country again, I hope He will 
make me willing to go, and give me faith to rely and 
trust in Him. I have great reason so to do, for He has 
wonderfully preserved me, and done great things for 
one of the worst of sinners. O that I may be enabled 
to live to His honor and glory, as well as to speak of 
His mercies. No gentleman could be more acceptable 
to me as chaplain than yourself. 

" I shall do all in my power in favor of the poor cap- 
tives for whom you intercede. I sincerely wish you and 
yours the best of Heaven's blessings. Desiring remem- 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 161 

brance in your petitions to the Throne of Grace for 
mercy." 

In March, 1747, Sir William writes the following to 
his Excellency Governor Wentworth : — 

Sir, — The Honorable Peter Warren, Esquire, hav- 
ing signified to me in a letter dated the 24th of October 
last that the Right Honorable the Lords Commissioners 
of the Admiralty by letter to him, dated 13th of March 
last, had directed him to build four ships of war in 
New England, two of them of twenty-four guns and 
two of forty-four guns, and the said Peter Warren, 
Esquire, having, in his aforementioned letter to me, 
desired that I would undertake to agree with some shi|> 
Wright or shipwrights for the erecting and building one 
of the said ships of forty-four guns in Pascataqua, and 
whereas I have been treating with Colonel Nathaniel 
Messerve of this province, and have proposed his com- 
ing under contract for his Majesty's service in England, 
and being desirous of advice concerning the value 
of such a ship, I beg you will be pleased to appoint 
three or more gentlemen of probity^ skill, and judgment 
in ship-building, to take the premises under considera- 
tion, and report in writing to your Excellency as soon 
as may be, what such a ship is worth per ton, to be 
built and completely furnished in the manner aforesaid. 

W. P. 

Governor B. Wentworth ordered Joshua Pierce, 
Jotham Odiorne, and Mark Hunking Wentworth to 
estimate the value of such a ship, who reported nine 
pounds per ton as a fair price for government to give 
for the vessel, to be completely fitted with forty-four 
guns. 

14* 



162 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

This undertaking opened a correspondence between 
Sir William and the Lords of the Admiralty, who 
furnished him with models and directions, and honored 
his drafts while the vessels were building. When 
finished, they were loaded with spars and naval stores, 
and sent to London under convoy, having only one tier 
of guns mounted. The ship was called the America, 
and was esteemed one of the best frigates in the 
British navy. 

It seems almost incredible that one man should 
be able to attend to so many and such diversified 
branches of business at once, — a merchant, chief 
justice of the Court of Common Pleas, senior colonel 
of a regiment and thereby commander-in-chief of the 
militia of Maine, president of the governor's council, 
colonel of a regiment in the regular British army, and 
superintendent and accountant of the recruiting service, 
commissioner to treat with the Indians, manager of 
the largest landed interests in New England, owner 
of saw-mills, extensively engaged in the fisheries, 
superintending the building of a frigate, and all the 
while corresponding with persons engaged in these 
various pursuits, with the recruiting officers of his 
regiment, and with his old companions in arms. Yet 
his biographer and pastor, Rev. Dr. Stevens, says that 
it was a common remark of him, that whatever he 
undertook was always sure to succeed. 

His British regiment was stationed at Louisburg, 
where he sent recruits as fast as they could be enlisted. 
In July, 1747, he felt it due to his regiment to visit it, 
and wrote to Governor Shirley for advice, saying 
^he had received a letter from Governor Knowles in 
which he writes : " I beg you will make use of my 
name to the captains of any of the king's ships that 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OP LOUISBUEG. 163 

may arrive at Boston for to accommodate you with a 
passage ; had I any ship to send for you I really would, 
but if the Achilles (my schooner) will suit yon, pray 
command her when ready." I desire your Excellency 
would be pleased to favor me with your advice, 
whether I had not best proceed immediately in that 
schooner, provided they will call in here (Kittery) and 
take my stores, etc., on board. For if I should not 
embrace this opportunity it may be too late before 
I have another to go there and return before winter. 

" If your Excellency should have any thoughts of 
sending Captain Tyng to guard the fisheries on the 
Sable Island banks, by your permission he might land 
me at Louisburg, and visit the eastern harbors on his 
return. Your commands I shall at all times gladly 
obey." 

Governor Shirley advised the commander of the 
Achilles to send Sir William notice, by express, to be 
ready, and that he would call for him at Kittery. 

A close intimacy existed many years between Sir 
William and Judge Hill of Berwick, who commanded 
a company in his regiment, and was an associate at the 
council board and on the bench. Sir William's will 
was always in the judge's keeping, and wishing to 
make some alterations in it before sailing for Louis- 
burg, he despatched a messenger for it, and then 
returned it to his custody. On the eve of his de- 
parture he published a notice to all deserters from his 
regiment, that "if they would immediately return to 
their duty they should be kindly received, and have 
their offences forgiven and their passages paid to Louis- 
burg ; " adding, that " all ablebodied men who are 
inclined to enlist in his regiment shall be clothed, 
treated, and paid well." 



164 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Admiral Warren, who left Boston for the British 
Channel soon after the proud reception of Pepperrell 
and himself, writes from Portsmouth, April 2, 1747, and 
among other things, respecting their accounts at the 
war department. 

Dear Sir, — I had a very agreeable passage to Eng- 
land. Since my arrival here I have been very much 
hurried in order to pass our accounts for the disburse- 
ments at Louisburg, but can do nothing for want of all 
the vouchers from Mr. Green, to whom I beg you will 
write to send all of them as soon as possible. I do 
assure you that all those disbursements lie as a very 
heavy charge upon you and me, and will do so upon 
our heirs if we do not take care to clear them. * * * 
My expectation of going to America with a squadron 
of ships prevented my writing to you on this head 
before ; but that being otherwise determined, and I 
employed in channel service, and only a few ships 
intended for your coast, not proper for my rank to com- 
mand, I now earnestly beg you will think of extricating 
both yourself and me from the difficulties we are 
jointly involved in by our accounts with the public 
offices, which give me leave to tell you if neglected 
may be the ruin of us both. I hope you are very 
forward in the ship to be built by you for the crown, 
and that you will, as you promised, recommend my 
nephew, Mr. Johnson, to the command of the first 
company that shall be vacant in your regiment. I 
dare say you will hear T have done every thing in my 
power for the service of America in general, and of 
New England in particular. I am so much hurried I 
can only assure you that I shall never while I live, 
lessen in my esteem and friendship for you. My best 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 165 

regards attend you and Governor Wentworth, and all 
other friends in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. I 
shall ever be proud of an opportunity of serving them 
and you, being very sincerely, etc., etc. 

It was in the autumn of 1746, that the French fleet 
was dispersed and wrecked or disabled, and returned to 
France. The following year another fleet of thirty- 
eight sail was fitted out from France, under M. de 
la Jonquiere, who was the third officer in rank in 
D'Anville's fleet. One part of this fleet was appointed 
to convoy six East India ships, and the rest, with the 
transports and merchantmen, full of soldiers' stores and 
goods, were destined for Canada and Nova Scotia. 
The English Admirals, Anson and Warren, sailing in 
pursuit of this fleet, fell in with it on the 3d of May, 
when, after a regular and well-fought battle, the French 
struck their colors. Six of their men-of-war and all 
their East India ships were captured, and between 
four thousand and five thousand French were made 
prisoners. This was the third disaster that befell the 
French navy within less than three years, — the first 
at Louisburg, when the Vigilant was captured with 
other armed vessels ofl" the harbor ; the second in 1746, 
under the Duke D'Anville, when a large fleet was 
dispersed by tempests and nearly unmanned by pesti- 
lence ; and in this third defeat, the loss of ships was 
attended by the loss in property of a million and a 
half. For this glorious achievement Admiral Warren 
was in turn made a Baronet. 

Sir William was delighted at the success of his old 
companion in arms, and after congratulating him 
adverts to the difficulties met with in settling their 
accounts, and encourages him that his nephew will be 
provided for. 



166 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



[To Admiral Warren,] 

Louisburg, September 10, 1747. 

Dear Sir, — I left New England the beginning 
of last month, and upon my arrival here, I received 
your most esteemed favors of the 2d April and 1st 
June last ; and hearing of your good success against 
the French fleet, and the honor conferred on you of 
Baronet, has given me such pleasure as I cannot find 
words to express. 

I am much concerned to hear you meet with diffi- 
culty in getting our accounts passed. Mr. Green is 
now having the vouchers compared and signed by 
Governor Knowles to go by this conveyance, and 
I have ordered Messrs. Apthorp and Sparhawk to 
hasten theirs, and I design to take my passage for New 
England next week. If they have not sent them 
before, I shall hasten them. I am sure all our accounts 
are honestly kept, and considering the difficulty we 
labored under after we came into this place, in having 
the French to take care of, the houses torn in pieces, the 
rain, no fuel in the garrison, and the long, cold winters, 
that it was impossible to do things in a regular manner, 
as might have been done in a regular garrison. I am 
sure we made no advantage to ourselves, and to suffer 
in our estates would be very hard.* 

I have written you several letters since you left New 
England, but do riot find whether you wrote me, or had 
received either of them. 



* The deficient vouchers amounted to twenty-six thousand pounds 
sterling, but new certified vouchers were obtained for about the 
whole sum. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 167 

I sent by the Mermaid to the Lords of the Admiralty 
and to the commissioners of the navy, a copy of the 
contract to build two forty-four's, made with Colonel 
Messerve, as you desired. I think he will build a fine 
ship, and hope it will be an honor to the country. I 
was obliged to agree with him to pay in sterling 
money. 

Your nephew, Mr. John Warren Johnson, left this 
place a few days before I arrived, in order to wait on 
Lady Warren to England, as we hear you have sent one 
of his Majesty's ships for her. 

Nothing would give me greater pleasure than to have 
an opportunity to serve yourself or any friend of yours. 
There is no company as yet become vacant in our regi- 
ment, neither has any officer died. I am sorry there 
should be occasion, the day I arrived, for a court-martial 
being held by order of his Majesty, for trying my Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Ryan, for filling up a blank commission 
without leave, and it is believed he will be cashiered. 
If so there will be a vacancy for your nephew, provided 
the rank in my regiment go according to seniority, the 
major to be lieutenant-colonel ; and I now mention this 
to you that you may move in time, and I shall write to 
the secretary of war in his favor, and shall be glad if 
something may be done to advance his prospects. But 
as Captain Blayney is the oldest captain, he will expect 
to be made major. 

We are too sensible of the value of your services to 
New England even to doubt of your doing all in your 
power to serve us ; and your kind expressions of friend- 
ship to me lay me under new obligations. I hope I 
shall never do any thing to lessen your friendship. And 
it is my earnest desire that the Almighty, who rules 
and governs all things, will still be with you, and make 



168 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

you a still greater blessing to your king and country. 
I hope your most estimable lady and children will 
arrive in safety. I am, dear Sir, 

Your friend and most obedient servant, 

W. P. 
P. S. If Major Mercer, who was sent some time past 
to England by Governor Knowles, should be removed 
into another regiment, then there may be a vacancy for 
Bradstreet. 

Sir William writes, on the same date as the above, 
to the Right Honorable Henry Fox, secretary of war, 
that Colonel Ryan, by order of his Majesty to Governor 
Knowles, is on trial for filling up a lieutenant's blank 
commission to Edmund Watmough without authority, 
and requests " in case he is dismissed that he would 
apply to his Majesty to have Lieutenant Warren John- 
son, nephew to Admiral Sir Peter Warren, and a 
very promising young gentleman, appointed captain," 
" whom," he adds, " I have a very great regard for, and 
if his Majesty would be pleased to give him the com- 
mission it would be very grateful to me." The request 
was complied with much to the gratification of Pep- 
perrell. 

He furnishes, at the same time, an account of his 
progress in filling his regiment and the difficulties 
encountered. " Governor Shirley," he says, " having 
communicated to you an account of the difficulties 
attending the raising of recruits for his Majesty's regi- 
ment under his command, and the necessary and 
unavoidable charges, I must take leave to refer you 
thereto, not to, give your honor the trouble of having 
the same repeated by me. I would only take the 
freedom to intimate that his Majesty's regiment, of 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 169 

which I have the honor to be colonel, has labored 
under still greater difficulties, and the loss it has sus- 
tained of soldiers that have been detached from this 
place in some of the small armed vessels to reconnoitre 
the enemy, has been considerable. As I am informed 
that the troops raised for the expedition against Canada 
are to be disbanded, I have determined to embark im- 
mediately for Boston with Governor Knowles, with a 
view of improving the opportunity for recruiting my 
regiment, but as I hear that a number of soldiers are to 
be raised from them for the security of Annapolis Royal, 
I expect to meet with difficulty. As they were enlisted 
for an expedition only against Canada, they will ex- 
pect the same bounty as if they never had been enlisted, 
but nothing in my power shall be wanting to complete 
the regiment." 

Sir William's royal regiment was, by order of the 
king, to consist of ten companies. One of the 
weekly returns mentions the following list of ,^7"?^' 
officers as captains : 1. Sir William Pepperrell ; 
2. Lieutenant- Colonel Ryan ; 3. Major Mercer ; 4. 
Captain Blayney ; 5. Captain Boyles ; 6. Captain 
Jacobs ; 7. Captain Bradstreet ; 8. Captain Mason ; 9. 
Captain Wooster; 10. Captain Gardner. The organ- 
ization of armies seems to have been different from 
that of modern times. In the army that went tO' 
Loifisburg, Pepperrell was lieutenant-general, and also^ 
colol\el of a regiment. In the above list he is coloneL 
of the regiment and captain of one of the companies,, 
and his lieutenant-colonel and major are captains also. 

Captain Blayney was a man of some distinction at 
home, and was a favorite with Sir William, to whom 
he writes : " I beg you will be so good as to 
remember your promise, and ask Mr. Knowles "°' 

15 



170 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

and the commanding officer, that I may go to New 
England this winter, as I long greatly to see it; and 
could I have the pleasure of attending you to Old 
England, as I hear you are going, it would give 
me great pleasure, as I am intimately acquainted with 
several persons at court, whom you will be obliged to 
see, as Lords in waiting to his Majesty, and the Duke 
of Richmond who is my personal friend, and I am sure 
will esteem it a particular favor." Sir William replied : 
" Before I go to England I shall endeavor to see you, 
and should be pleased to have you travel with me, and 
to serve you at all times." But in a short time after he 
had the pleasure of congratulating Blayney on his pro- 
motion to major in Shirley's regiment, and concludes 
his letter with a regret at losing him from his own regi- 
ment, and reiterates the desire to have his company in 
a travel through England, which he hopes soon to 
undertake. 

In the summer and autumn of 1746 there were 
frequent rumors of French fleets being expected to 
attack our seaports, on which occasions Pepperrell 
addressed circulars to all his militia captains, one of 
which is before us, and reads thus : " Kittery, Sept. 18, 
1746. There is talk of a French fleet being on our 
coast ; if so, you may depend there will be an army of 
French and Indians upon our backs. Pray be careful, 
and direct all the captains in Berwick to see that all 
the men are provided with arms and ammunition, and 
let there be a good watch kept in your town, and be 
much upon your guard." Circular orders like this 
were frequently issued to the captains during this and 
the following year, some of which are still preserved in 
York county as autographs. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 171 



CHAPTER VIII. 

After a few weeks passed at Louisburg, in oversee- 
ing the concerns of his regiment, Sir William left it 
under the command of his senior officer, Captain Chad 
Blayney, — the lieutenant-colonel being cashiered, and 
the major absent in London. He embarked in the 
squadron of Admiral Charles Knowles, who left Louis- 
burg under the charge of Lieutenant-Governor Hopson;. 
On their passage, when near Cape Sables, on the 24th 
of September, they encountered a storm, so violent that 
the Canterbury was obliged to throw overboard sixteen 
guns, the Warwick lost all three of her masts, the 
schooner Essex lost her three guns, and the Achilles 
was obliged to cut away her main topmast. In this 
shattered condition they arrived in Boston on the 2d 
of October, excepting one vessel, the Shark, which putr 
into Pascataqua. Sir William describes the storm in a- 
letter to Lieutenant-Governor Hopson, giving the fore- 
going particulars. In the same letter he subjoins a few 
words in favor of the bearer, a lady who had formerly 
resided at Louisburg : — 

" This, I expect, will be delivered you by Mrs. De- 
caret, a gentlewoman who was at Louisburg when it 
was surrendered to us. She and her relations had 
many houses there. She tells me her design in going 
there is, to open a coffee-house. She has a good char- 
acter, and as it must be pleasing to every generous 
person to show kindness to the distressed, I recommend 



172 / LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

her to your favor. To-morrow, I design to set out for 
Pascataqua, where my dwelling is, and shall be glad to 
render you any service in my power. My best respects 
to the honest chaplain and all inquiring friends." 

Pepperrell, soon after landing in Boston, took his seat 
as President of the Governor's Council, and Knowles 
proceeded to repair his ships and equip them for active 
service. Having done this, he dropped down the harbor, 
and anchored at Nantasket Roads. By this time a large 
number of his men had deserted, and he thought it 
reasonable that Boston, where they had escaped, should 
supply him with as many men as he had lost. Early in 
the morning of November 17th, he sent his boats up to 
town, and surprised not only as many seamen as could 
be found on board any of the ships, outward bound as 
well as others, but swept the wharves, taking some ship- 
carpenters' apprentices and laboring landsmen. His con- 
duct was universally resented, as outrageous. A mob 
soon collected, and at nightfall several thousand people 
assembled in King (now State) street, below the town- 
house, where the General Court was sitting. Brickbats 
and other missiles were dashed through the windows 
into the council-chamber. The governor, by advice of 
Pepperrell and other councillors, made a speech from 
the balcony, in which he condemned the impress, and 
promised his utmost endeavors to have the men released, 
and he gently reprehended the turbulent proceedings of 
the people, but without effect. Pepperrell, with all his per- 
sonal popularity, was equally unsuccessful in stilling the 
tumult. The seizure and restraint of the commanders and 
other officers who were in town, was insisted on, as the 
only method likely to procure the release of the inhabi- 
tants from on shipboard. The militia of Boston were 
summoned next day to the aid of government, but re- 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 173 

fused to appear. Apprehensive of still greater outrages, 
the governor withdrew to Castle William. Letters 
meantime were passing between him and the commo- 
dore, while Pepperrell, who of all persons was best 
adapted to meet such an emergency, exercised his mas- 
terly tact in pouring oil upon the troubled waves, yet at 
the same time urging upon the Council and House of 
Representatives the necessity of passing vigorous resolu- 
tions condemning such riotous proceedings. The course 
was successful. A town-meeting was called, in which 
both the high-handed course of the commodore, in order- 
ing the impress, and the tumult of the populace, were 
alike censured. " The militia of the town the next day 
promptly made their appearance, and conducted the 
governor with great potnp to his house. The commo- 
dore dismissed most if not all of the inhabitants who 
had been impressed, and the squadron sailed, to the 
great joy and repose of the town." Pepperrell's agency 
in extricating the commodore from his difficulty won 
his gratitude and respect, as will hereafter appear from 
his subsequent letters. 

A few days after this disturbance, December 9th, and 
whilst the legislature was in session, the old Province 
house took fire, and its whole interior was consumed. 
The legislature adjourned its session to a hotel, and 
there dissolved, to meet the following February. Sir 
William did not appear until after he received the fol- 
lowing letter from General Waldo : " Your presence in 
the General Court has been always of great service to 
Maine, and I assure you it was never more necessary 
than at present, though little else has yet happened than 
fruitless debates about a place for building a Province 
house. You have doubtless heard it was voted at Cam- 
bridge. They have now got it at Roxbury; and very 

15* 



174 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

probably, as the Board of Councillors have this day 
been so hardy as to pass a non-concurrence, it may 
again be in Boston. Mr. Royal offered them five hun- 
dred pounds, old tenor, if they would build it at Cam- 
bridge. I have endeavored to outdo him in generosity, 
and have proposed to some of the leading men, as I 
think they are called, in the honorable house, a gift to 
the province of 100,000 acres of land, and that next 
adjoining the court house, if they will build it at Penob- 
scot ! ! and rather than fail, though my esteem for land 
does not abate, I would go to a further quantity, if well 
assured all the members would attend there I It how- 
ever accorded with the views of Sir William, and of a 
large majority, to repair the old Province house, which 
was occupied by the legislature until the present State 
house was built, and has always gone by the name of 
the Old Ste-te House, since the Revolution. 

Early in 1748, Sir William notifies his foreign corre- 
spondents, that he had retired from mercantile pursuits, 
and recommends to them his son as his successor. 
About this time he was severely afflicted with rheu- 
matic fever, from which he was ever after a periodical 
sufferer ; which, in a letter to Governor Shirley, he at- 
tributed to the cold during the long siege against Louis- 
burg, and to the shattered condition of his head-quarters 
during the following winter. To his friend General 
Waldo he also writes of his ill health, and thanks him 
for advice to quit business, which he says he has already 
done, excepting some affairs that none but himself can 
well settle. 

There was about this time arising an unfriendly spirit 
among a few of the members of the General Court 
against Sir William, which originated partly in his de- 
termined opposition to the land bank, and to an inflated 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 175 

paper currency, and was no doubt fostered in some de- 
gree by a spirit of envy at the distinguished honors 
lavished upon him by king and people. It was akin to 
the Newburgh letters that were written against Wash- 
ington. Amons: the leaders of this faction were colonels 
Campbell and Robert Hale. General Waldo apprises 
him of it, and advises to bring, when he comes, the ac- 
count of their proceedings in the garrison at Louisburg, 
that it may be settled, " as there are complaints against 
us from several quarters of our not having done our 
duty. I have diverted Campbell's applying to the Gen- 
eral Court until the arrival of yourself. Colonel Moulton, 
and Mr. Hill. On the appearance of either, if not sooner, 
you may depend on hearing of petitions by way of com- 
plaint to the House. The mean or bad spirit that will 
appear will be disreputable to individuals, and probably 
may prejudice the whole country." 

Sir William little thought after leaving Louisburg, 
as he supposed in peace and friendship with his officers 
there, that they would immediately after raise a storm 
more trying to his feelings than the one he had encoun- 
tered on the passage. A few days after his arrival in 
Boston, a letter was received from Captain Blayney, 
commander of his regiment, Mercer being absent, in-, 
closing a letter from lieutenants Glazier and Grant, and 
ensign Winslow, the purport of which may be inferred 
from the following reply to Blayney. 

Sir, — I am favored with your letter of the 2d Octo- 
ber, and at the same time received a very impertinent 
one from Lieutenant Glazier of my regiment, who, 
together with Lieutenant Grant and Ensign Winslow, 
I understand from yours, have complained of my stop- 
ping a year's pay, which they pretend is due to them 



176 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

for service done for the regiment before they received 
their commissions. A copy of Glazier's letter I inclose 
to you, in which I persuade myself you will think he 
has treated me so indecently, that it would be showing 
him too much regard to send him an answer to it ; and 
if I did, there could be no other proper 6ne than to tell 
him that his behavior to me is impudent and ungrate- 
ful in the extreme. You will, therefore, since you have 
so far indulged him and the other two officers, as to 
receive their complaints, and taken the trouble upon 
yoi> to represent them to me, give me leave to trouble 
you likewise with an answer to them, together with a 
copy of Glazier's letter to me, which I desire you will 
take an opportunity of making as public in the garri- 
son, by reading them openly, as you shall judge proper, 
or as it seems their talk has been, since my leaving 
Louisburg ; for not one of them thought fit to make the 
least mention of their pretended grievance to me whilst 
I was there, but waited for an opportunity to raise a 
clamor about it behind my back, which I think a base 
circumstance in their behavior. 

As to Lieutenant Glazier and the liberty he has 
taken to observe upon my disposal of a commission to 
Mr. McKenny (who is the person, I suppose, he means 
in his letter), in the manner he has done, all I need say 
of it is, that it is contrary not only to the duty and 
gratitude which he owes me as his colonel and bene- 
factor, but to common decency, and that I have reason 
to think Mr. McKenny will not disgrace his commis- 
sion nor the king's service, as I have now too much 
reason to fear he will. But I shall further add, though 
I think it is too condescending to vouchsafe any further 
answer upon it, to so mean and ungrateful a man, that 
1 had very early promised that commission to Mr. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 177 

Bourne, who had served at Louisburg, in the expedi- 
tion, and that upon his request, and for his benefit, as 
well as for the service of my regiment; Mr. McKenny 
having engaged to raise me fifty men at Philadelphia, I 
did, upon his being recommended to me as a gentleman 
well qualified for an officer, fill up that commission 
with his name instead of Mr. Bourne's. 

As to Lieutenant Glazier's pretending a right to one 
of my commissions for his distinguished behavior in 
the late expedition, I do not think he has the least. 
Governor Shirley had given him an ensign's commis- 
sion, and upon an attempt being made upon the island 
battery, during the siege, the men who undertook that 
enterprise, and were thereupon indulged in their humor 
of choosing their officers in it, desired he might go with 
them, in the rank of a captain, which he did ; but 
whether he behaved well or ill upon that occasion does 
not certainly appear. 

His pretence that I employed him as an officer in 
ray regiment before T delivered him his commission, or 
that I stopped a penny of pay that he had the least 
claim to, is groundless. He enlisted one or two men 
for my regiment at Louisburg, for which service I 
allowed him pay, as I did to others who enlisted men 
for me ; but it is false that I then promised, or had the 
least thoughts of giving him a commission ; and, I dare 
say, it is equally so to pretend that he had any expecta- 
tion of it, for, upon his going to Boston, he took beating 
orders, from Governor Shirley, to raise men for the ex- 
pedition against Canada, in his regiment, and received 
money for enlisting them, as all the other officers in that 
service did, and was to have a commission given him by 
Mr. Shirley, according to the number of men he should 
raise, upon which condition, all the other officers in 



178 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

that expedition took their beating orders, and acted as 
he did; and so he continued, till upon his failing of 
success in raising any number of men, he applied to 
me in New England, telling me he could not return 
again to his trade (carpenter), and should be ruined if I 
did not provide for him in my regiment ; upon which, 
and the intercession of several persons, particularly 
Major Titcomb, who told me he should take the favor 
as done to himself, I did out of regard to the major, 
and compassion for him, give him a commission. Ma- 
jor Titcomb, indeed, and he promised that he should 
raise some men for the regiment, but he never raised 
one afterwards, so that I was obliged to order him to 
his post at Louisburg without any. The day that he 
received his commisson he drew for subsistence, and 
continued to from that time ; and though he had 
received some of the regiment's money to enlist men, 
he has not yet accounted for one penny of it. His 
commission, indeed, I dated in September, 1745 ; but 
surely no man of common sense will say he had the 
least right, when I gave it to him, to claim a year's 
previous pay, in which he had rendered no service in 
the regiment, any more than he had to have his com- 
mission antedated. And if (as he pretends) I did, upon 
his quitting all pretence of drawing pay before he re- 
ceived his commission, and thereby gave him the 
advantage of a year's rank, was any wrong done him in 
receiving from him an acquittance of pay which was 
not due to him ; and did he not, on the other hand, 
receive an advantage by his commission's being ante- 
dated ; and how can he, with the least truth or modesty, 
say that he paid a penny, or gave any consideration for 
his commission, in this case ? 

He writes in a strain as if he had a right to his com- 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 179 

mission from the beginning ; he says he " could not have 
it from me till I stopped a year's payP Pray what right 
had he to the commission above other officers of the 
expedition, or any other person whom I might think 
proper to give it to ? Was I under any obhgation 
from his Majesty to dispose of it to him, or any other 
of his brother officers ? Was I not at liberty to dis- 
pose of it to any suitable gentleman I pleased ? and 
am I accountable to any one but his Majesty for mak- 
ing use of the commissions he intrusted me with ? 
Nay, had the lieutenant been obliged to give an acquit- 
tance of pay that was really due to him, before I would 
consent to give him the commission, or had I even 
taken a sum of money out of his pocket as a present 
for it, what has a court of inquiry to do with that ? or 
if they had, I presume they would scarcely inquire into 
the matter behind my back, and without giving me an 
opportunity to defend my honor against these com- 
plaints, especially when the officers who make them 
must at all events act dishonorably and ungratefully in 
the case. For was it as they state it, namely, that I 
had taken a gratuity from them for giving them the 
preference in my disposal of the commissions, by 
which they now enjoy a considerable advantage, which 
they had no right to claim from me above others of 
their fellow officers, or which I might have disposed of 
to a stranger, was it not base and ungrateful in them 
to fly in my face for it, and against all rules of honor 
to demand that gratuity back? But this is not the 
case ; they had no right to a farthing of the pay, they 
pretend to say has been stopped from them, which 
makes their behavior still more base and ungrateful, 
and I should think the countenancing of it against the 



180 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

custom of the army. I hope my using such plain 
terms may be excused, when it is considered that these 
three subalterns have no pretence to the name of gen- 
tlemen, but from the king's commission, which they 
obtained through my favor, and most unworthily wear. 
As to their pretence that they lost any part of their 
New England pay, on account of the commissions I 
gave them, if they have, it must be their own fault in 
not applying for it properly. 

It would be repeating the same thing to speak of 
Grant and Winslow. Grant in particular had beating 
orders in the service of the Canada expedition, till he 
received his commission from me, as Glazier had, and 
never was employed by me, nor by any officer in my 
regiment, till I delivered him his commission. And as 
to this poor creature, whom I have been obliged to 
support, after being sent out of the garrison for dis- 
honoring his commission, by making part of Mr. 
Knowles' kitchen, I must observe that I find his ingrati- 
tude rises in proportion to his obligations to me.* As 
to Winslow, I never employed him in the least service 
for the regiment, or promised him a commission, before 
I delivered one to him. 

Doubtless the pay in dispute strictly belongs to the 
king, if custom has not made that, as well as other 
vacant pay, the colonel's perquisite, which I have very 
good authority to think it does. If it does not, and I 
am mistaken, it lies ready to be stopped as a saving to 
the crown. 

* Grant was a Salem man, and was highly recommended to Sir 
William for a captaincy, by Rev. John Sparhawk of Salem, brother 
of his son-in-law Colonel S., which accounts for his being supported 
by Sir William. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 181 

In two or three months after the date of the above 
letter, Mercer returned from England to Louisburg, 
promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel in Pepper- 
reil's regiment. The three officers who had addressed 
the letter to which the foregoing is a reply, were joined 
by three others in an appeal to Lieutenant-Governor 
Hopson for redress ; and he forwarded their complaints 
to the secretary of war, without giving Pepperrell any 
notice. They also addressed a letter to Sir William, 
to be forwarded by Lieutenant- Colonel Mercer, to which 
he makes the following reply, addressed to Mercer : — 

Kittei-y , February 19, 1748. 

Sir, — Yours of December 30th is received. 1 
observed what you wrote relating to the copy of a 
letter you inclosed me, signed by Lieutenants Dwight, 
Staples, Grant, Glazier, Whiting, and Winslow. I 
think these persons have treated me so ill in their letter 
as to render it improper for me to give them any further 
answer than that I am ready to respond to any of their 
complaints to the secretary of war, whenever they are 
made. 

The blank commissions sent me all bore date in 1745. 
These persons who complain had pay from the several 
governments that employed them, until about July, 
1746, and most of them had made application to Gov- 
ernor Shirley for beating orders to raise men to go in 
the Canada expedition, and had enlisted men and taken 
money of this government for the same. Some of 
them made an advantage of it, as you may see by the 
inclosed copies of affidavits, by clearing the men after 
enlistment, without any leave so to do. I could send 
more of them, but I would not give you the trouble. 
When they found they could not obtain a commission 

16 



182 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

for that expedition to Canada, they and their friends 
applied to me for one. I could not think they were 
entitled to pay until the time I thought fit to give them 
the commissions, and as I was informed that the 
vacant pay belonged to the colonel, I fairly stated the 
case more than a year ago, and sent it to the agent to 
be laid before the honorable secretary of war for his 
opinion, that if I had a right to it I insisted on it, and 
should dispose of it as I pleased. If it was a saving 
to the crown it was well, and if the officers had a right 
to it I was content, for I never desired any money but 
what I had a just claim to, and could own before the 
world. I have never made any use of the money, nor 
ever designed to, until I was well assured from the 
secretary that it did of right belong to me. 

The secretary of war returned the following answer 
to the six complaints : — 

" All the commissions for Sir William Pepperrell's 
regiment were dated in September, 1745, with blanks 
for the days of the month only. They were sent by 
Lieutenant- Colonel Ryan, who went first to New Eng- 
land, and there tarried until Sir William's return from 
Louisburg, in July following, when they were put into 
his hands. 

" All the officers appointed by Sir William Pepperrell 
who were on the spot and did duty at Louisburg, had 
their pay from the establishment of the regiment, the 
24th of September, and so had those officers that were 
first employed as candidates in raising men, who 
applied themselves entirely to, and succeeded in that 
service. But it was Sir William Pepperrell's opinion 
that those who had made an attempt for superior com- 
missions by endeavoring to raise men for the Canada 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 183 

expedition^ or who had not otherwise qualified them- 
selves for constant services, or had met with but little 
success, were not entitled to the pay from the date of 
the commissions, which he could not alter, and there- 
fore took their relinquishments, which, whether it be his 
perquisite as he has been informed, or a saving to the 
public, makes no difference in his apprehension with 
respect to the memorialists, who can have no preten- 
sions to it." 

Although Sir William had resolved, as stated in his 
letter to Captain Blayney, and subsequently to Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Mercer, not to answer the impertinent 
letters of the officers, he relented, and after the lapse of 
a year he addressed them the following : — 

[To Lieutenants Edmund Dwight, Peter Stapley,'James Grant, Beamsley 
Glazier, Nathan Whiting, Ensign John Winslow.] 

Kittety, December 30, 1748. 

As I have been confined for some time by a cold 
which still remains upon me, I cannot enlarge, but 
shall defer it until next spring, when I hope to see you 
all at Louisburg. I don't think it is in any man's 
power justly to accuse me of breach of promise, and I 
hope it never will be. If you were entitled to pay 
before you had your commissions or did duty in the 
regiment, I have no power to hinder it. The affair has 
long since been laid before the Honorable Secretary at 
War, though I have no account of his determination, 
not having received any letter from the agent, Mr. 
Kilby, for several months. No doubt, if you write him, 
he will inform you. You took out beating orders and 
the government's money to enlist men for the Canada 
expedition, as appears by the obligations under your 
hands. I have several affidavits sent me from several 



184 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

parts, much of the same tenor as the inclosed. Sm-ely, 
had I known this, I should have doubted whether 
those persons were entitled to his majesty's commis- 
sion, that cleared men from his majesty's service with- 
out orders. These affidavits were sent me when the 
signers of them heard how my character was treated 
by some ungrateful persons to whom I had been a 
benefactor. But I desire, when I am reviled, not to 
revile again, and to forgive all that abuse me. I am 
too well acquainted with ingratitude not to know from 
what manner of persons it must proceed. 

Yours, etc., W. P. 

■ The Secretary of War wrote by order of the 

Duke of Cumberland to both Pepperrell and 
Shirley, against whom complaint was made by the 
officers of their regiments, that he not only approves 
but applauds the stoppage of the Cape Breton officers' 
back pay, (which he says, however, is not a colonel's 
perquisite, though it was formerly, that it must now be 
a saving to the crown,) that they are entitled to his 
Majesty's favor thereby, and they may depend on his 
Royal Highness's peculiar regards. 

It was, doubtless, apprehended by Sir William, that 
his officers, who were so signally foiled in their attempt 
to prejudice him with the government in London, 
would resort to secret detraction, by false representa- 
tions to individuals there, who would spread them be- 
fore the public. Rumors of the kind actually reached 
him, which determined him to embark for London, to 
meet and silence them. Besides this object, he felt 
that his interests there required his presence. 

To Governor Shirley he writes, " I have pri- 
* vate affairs to settle in England with several 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 185 

merchants ; and, understanding my character has been 
aspersed there, I have thoughts of going out in the 
Hastings, but have not fully determined. If I had, 
your Excellency should have known it, in order to 
receiving your commands, which it would give me 
pleasure to execute. I hope to have an opportunity to 
wait on your Excellency soon in Boston." 

Captain Kinselagh, of Pepperrell's regiment, arrived 
at Louisburg, and writes him respecting the rumors 
that had been floating against him in London, saying, 
" I had the pleasure of taking my leave of Sir Peter 
Warren and lady, and Mr. Kilby at Portsmouth. They 
all desired to be remembered to you, and were glad to 
find you were so clear of the reflection of selling com- 
missions, as also of taking the officers' pay. Mr. Kilby 
had shown your letter to the Duke of Newcastle 
(wherein you doubt the back pay being your due) and 
to the Secretary of War, who were well pleased with 
your conduct in that affair." General Waldo received 
intelligence about the same time from persons of dis- 
tinction in London, relating to the rumors, and their 
favorable termination, and writes to Sir William, " I 
congratulate you heartily on the account I have that 
your mountain stands strong." These reports relieved 
Sir William's mind, and induced him to delay his voy- 
age to London until the following year. 

Admiral Knowles, after the tumult in Boston, sailed 
to the West Indies, to cruise against the French and 
Spanish shipping. He writes from Jamaica, April 3, 
1748: — 

Dear Sir, — I embrace this opportunity of letting 
you know of my arrival here the 28th of January, from 
Boston, and since my arrival have been much hurried 

16* 



186 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

to get the squadron fitted for the sea, all hands being in 
port, revelling as if in profound peace, with nothing to 
do, or you should have heard from me long since by 
some opportunity or other. As soon as ever the ships 
could be got ready for the sea, I went out with a design 
to attack St. Jago de Cuba, but the winds proving north- 
erly, I could not lay hold of that coast, and therefore, 
that no time might be lost, I went up to Port Louis, 
upon Hispaniola, and attacked that, and the 8th past 
took it after some hours' pretty warm work on both 
sides. There were in the fort seventy-eight guns, 
mostly forty -two and thirty-six pounders, four brass 
mortars, and great quantities of all kinds of ammuni- 
tion. Thank God, the loss on our side has been very 
inconsiderable, the enemy more than six times our 
number. After having blown up the fort, I proceeded 
to St. Jago as at first designed, but found the enemy 
had got intelligence of my intentions, and had secured 
the harbor's mouth with vessels and fire-ships. I have 
therefore requested some land forces, and doubt not by 
next spring of taking it. In the mean time, I shall 
endeavor to distress our more inveterate enemy the 
French, at all places where ships can go. I have 
taken and destroyed five privateers this cruise, and 
about nine or ten merchant ships, and shall get fitted 
out again, I hope, in about a fortnight, and be amongst 
the thickest of them again. 

I cannot help being angry with the malicious author 
of a scurrilous libel published against me, soon after I 
left Boston, which Governor Shirley was so kind as to 
send me, and to express his resentment at. As he tells 
me, the author is unworthy and below my personal 
chastisement, I am determined to punish him to the 
utmost rigor of the law ; and although the liberty of the 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG, 187 

press is carried to a great length in England, yet I am 
convinced no printer dare publish so scandalous a 
reflection upon any person whatsoever ; and there- 
fore I think he ought to be punished as well as the 
author. 

I am far from reflecting upon any gentleman in New 
England upon this affair happening ; on the contrary 
am highly glad to find, as Mr. Shirley tells me, they all 
show a detestation of it. This will be delivered you by 
Captain Pearse of the new twenty-gun ship, whom I 
beg to recommend to your favors, and as the Louis- 
burg stationed ship will sail soon, I shall write you 
more fully by her; being with great truth and regard, 

Dear Sir, your most obedient and faithful humble 
servant, Charles Knowles. 

He writes again : — 

Jamaica, April 15, 1748. 

My dear Sir, — This accompanies a duplicate iof my 
last, since which nothing has happened in these parts 
worthy your notice ; but as the Worcester was bound to 
Cape Breton, and to call in her way to Boston, I could 
not let her go without addressing my good friend Sir 
William Pepperrell, and letting you know, blessed be 
God, that T am much mended in my health, and I think 
gather both flesh and strength daily. 

I have sent you by Captain Andrew a box of sweet- 
meats, and desired Governor Shirley to send you part 
of some good old rum I have sent him. You shall soon 
have a hogshead yourself, but I am nice, and therefore 
till I can meet with what is old, choice, and good, I have 
deferred it at present, but my friends have promised to 
get me some. If there is any thing that these parts 



188 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

afford, I beg you will freely lay your commands upon me, 
for there is no one I can have greater pleasure in serving 
than yourself. I shall give you the trouble of a letter 
by all opportunities, and hope some of them will convey 
you agreeable news. I know you sincerely wish me 
well, and therefore my satisfaction will be double when- 
I can render you any account of my successes. 

My best compliments to all friends, and believe me, 
ever, dear Sir, your most obedient and most faithful 
humble servant, Charles Knowles. 

Sir William addressed Governor Hopson on his pro- 
motion to the command of Louisburg: — 

April 22, 1748. 

Dear Sir, — The advice of your appointment to be 
governor-in-chief of Louisburg, gave me great pleasure, 
and I congratulate you and the gentlemen of the garri- 
son on your promotion. Although I may not have been 
so early in my address on this head as others of your 
friends, yet I beg leave to assure your Excellency I am 
as hearty therein, hoping you will long enjoy it, and 
that I shall have the yet further satisfaction of seeing 
Cape Breton and its dependencies annexed to the crown 
of Great Britain, and become a flourishing colony under 
your administration. And as your Excellency is satis- 
fied, from its situation, that it may be of the utmost 
importance, as well to the trade of Great Britain as to 
the security of all the Northern colonies, I doubt not 
you and your friends' interest will be employed in 
effectually securing it in English hands, which, from 
the late success of our ships in Europe, and Mr. 
Knowles's in the West Indies, I flatter myself may be 
easily effected. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 189 

I have applied to his Majesty for permission to visit 
Europe, which if obtained, I promise myself the pleasure 
of calling on you on my way at Louisburg, and taking 
with me your commands. In the "mean time, if I can 
render you any acceptable service here, I shall gladly 
court the occasion to let you know how much I am, 
dear Sir, your Excellency's most faithful and humble 
servant, • W. P. 

Sir William instituted suits, as before observed, 
against Colonel Ryan, for defamation, and brought a 
civil action for moneys he had used belonging to the 
regiment. Mr. Pratt, an attorney in Boston, brought 
the actions, to whom and to Benjamin Colman, a mer- 
chant there, the whole matter was intrusted. Great as 
was the injury done, or attempted to be done, to Sir 
William, his natural benevolence caused him to relent. 
In a letter to Colman, June 21, 1748, he says : " When 
I think of Colonel Ryan, what a poor creature he is, 
and I am afraid forsaken by God and man, I cannot 
help pitying him, and if he would make a proper ac- 
knowledgment in writing and secure the debt to me, as 
far as it is in his power, I could forgive him, but I am 
determined to refer the whole matter to you and Mr. 
Pratt." 

Governor Shirley sent for Mr. Colman to talk about 
the affair, and then wrote to Sir William, advising him 
to accept of an acknowledgment, clearing his honor 
from the defamatory expressions of Ryan, and an order 
on Mr. Kilby, the agent of the regiment in London. 
Ryan signed the acknowledgment, upon which Sir 
W^illiam released him from jail ; but before a bond was 
executed and an order given for the debt, Ryan made 



190 lilFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

his escape in a ship bound to England. But Kilby, 
secured the debt for Sir William, when Ryan adjusted 
his accounts at the war office. 

Governor Hopson having written him a request to 
pay a tailor's bill for work done for his regiment at 
Louisburg, his answer shows his sensitiveness at being 
thought remiss in the fulfilment of his engagements. 

* * * As to what you are pleased to mention re- 
lating to the making of the waistcoats for the regi- 
ment, I have to say, that I had advanced considerable 
money for said regiment, in recruiting-money^ which 
I sent two years past towards paying the non-commis- 
sioned officers and soldiers. I expected this tailor's bill 
to be deducted out of it. It cannot be expected that I 
should be acquainted with all the rules of the army, 
but so far as I do know, I shall endeavor faithfully to 
perform my duty in every particular. 

I do think it is the first time that ever any complaint 
was made against me for not paying my debts ; and if 
any person had given me a hint that the bill in question 
could not have been deducted out of that money which 
I had advanced for the regiment, payment should have 
been ordered lonof since. 

Your Excellency's most obedient, W. P. 

During his absence at the siege of Louisburg, impor- 
tant events transpired among Sir William's near rela- 
tives at home. His brother-in-law, William Tyler of 
Boston, writes him: " Your sister Frost" (widow 

July 5, q£ ^i^g jg^ig Hon. John Frost) " came to town to 
1745. 

see her son Joseph who we thought would have 

died, and Rev. Dr. Colman has persuaded her to come 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 191 

and live with him, and they are to be married in thirty 
days from this date.* Her son Joseph has bought her 
place at Great Island, and is going to live on it." But 
a more interesting event related to his only son now 
to be noticed. 



*They were married August 12, 1745, and Dr. Cohnan dying two 
years after, she married, after a lapse of another year, Judge Prescott 
of Danvers. 



192 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



CHAPTER IX. 

Andrew Pepperrell, the only son of Sir William, 
graduated at Harvard, 1743, at the age of twenty. 
While pursuing his preparatory studies and during his 
collegiate years, he was accustomed to mingle in the 
best circles in Boston. 

His mother's family were among the best connected 
of the town, as Balstons, Chauncy, and Sewells. He was 
also remotely connected by marriage with the family of 
Jonathan Waldo, a wealthy merchant, Mrs. Waldo 
being the mother of Nathaniel Sparhawk his brother- 
in-law, whose father was Rev. Nathaniel Sparhawk of 
Bristol, Rhode Island. Mr. Jonathan Waldo had a son 
by a former wife, named Samuel, who, to the best edu- 
cation the province afforded, added the advantages of 
foreign travel, having crossed the ocean fifteen times. 
Extensively concerned in the Waldo land patent in 
Maine, Samuel passed a portion of his time at Fal- 
mouth to superintend the landed interest. On the 
division of Pepperrell's regiment of Maine militia into 
two, Samuel Waldo was appointed to the command of 
the eastern one. He was also chosen many years a 
councillor at the same board with Pepperrell, and was 
largely concerned with him in mercantile affairs. Young 
Andrew, through the prominent families of Waldo, of 
Judge Sewall, Dr. Chauncy, Hirst, and his uncle Tyler, 
a merchant, with their numerous acquaintances, became 
extensively known; his comely person and polished 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 193 

manners were a passport to the best circles ; and his 
heirship to a fortune and a baronetcy placed him in the 
highest social position. Among the young ladies that 
attracted his admiration was Miss Hannah Waldo, 
daughter of the aforesaid Colonel Samuel Waldo. 
Highly educated, accomplished, and beautiful, Andrew 
could not resist her attractions, and after some desultory 
skirmishes, he struck his flag and acknowledged himself 
vanquished. They were betrothed in 1746, much to 
the gratification of both families. Sir William and 
Lady Pepperrell both expressed their joy at the prospect 
of receiving Miss Hannah as the wife of their only 
son. 

The lovers of romance are under no small obligation 
for the rich entertainment furnished them by several 
writers, in their versions of this affair, and of its sad 
catastrophe. But their materials were traditionary, and 
from the nature of the subject, were liable to embellish- 
ment in their transmission. The narratives are so 
gracefully drawn that it seems hard and unkind to mar 
them with the weapons of sober truth. It is, however, 
due to the memory of the young lady to remove from 
her the imputation of fickleness and heartless coquetry,, 
which the authors of these stories have unknowingly 
fixed in the mind of every reader. But for this con- 
sideration the following letters would have been sup- 
pressed. They are not a continuous series of all that 
passed between the parties on the subject ; but there is 
enough contained in them to place the lady's memory 
in a blameless light. Scattered as the Pepperrell 
papers have been to the four winds, it was only after 
much research that enough have been gathered to set 



the affair right. 



17 



194 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Sir William had expressed in a letter to General 
Waldo, his gratification at the prospect of a union of 
their families, and mentioned the amount he had done 
and intended to do for the young couple, closing his 
letter with kind messages to Miss Hannah. 

After the lapse of some months. General Waldo 
writes, January 9, 1748, on business, and adds : " As to 
the long talked of affair between Mr. Pepperrell and 
my daughter, I am at a loss what to think about it. 
You know matches are made in heaven, and what's 
appointed must be. It is not best for any to be over- 
anxious, but to govern with prudence, on which head 
no caution is necessary to you. I am very much 
obliged to Lady Pepperrell as well as yourself for your 
good liking of my daughter, and more especially that 
she should become yours. The proposed union gave 
me great pleasure, and the more so as I knew she 
could not fail to be happy in your family, and I 
promised myself it was not in her power to misbehave. 
I had never. Sir, any reason to doubt of yours or your 
lady's heartiness in the affair, but if there be not a 
mutual good liking between the young people, it will 
not be best they should come together. But I leave 
the affair to them. 

" I am, by yours, confirmed in my former sentiments, 
that you had done very handsomely for your son. 
Above a twelvemonth ago, I think it was, I had a 
conversation with him when I proposed a speedy issue 
to the business, and assured him my intentions as to 
the future well-being of my daughter were not con- 
tracted. He declared himself in a very genteel and 
generous manner. The sum you mention is large ; 
part of it is probably laid out upon his house. Some 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 195 

iTusfortnnes he has met with in trade, and possibly he 
rl.ay think that the improvement of the remainder may 
not be a sufficient sum to support upon as your son. 
I had some difficulty on this head myself before mar- 
riage. I got what I could from my father, and trusted 
Providence for the rest. My daughter is very well and 
presents her duty to you and Lady Pepperrell. Be also 
pleased to accept of my best regards." 

Both fathers, as we have seen, approved of the match. 
Waldo writes again in February : " I am obliged to you, 
Sir, and Lady Pepperrell for your good liking of the 
proposed alliance between our families ; nothing can be 
more agreeable to me, and it would be an additional 
satisfaction could there be a speedy consummation. It 
has been long enough pending for the young people to 
know, not only their own, but each other's mind. INIy 
good liking to it they have both of them been long 
acquainted with. Till lately I flattered myself that 
before I embarked for Europe, which I hope will be 
soon, (though not before I make you a visit to Kittery,) 
the proposed alliance would be finished." In a few 
days he writes again to the same purport, and adds : 
" We very much esteem yours and Lady Pepperrell's 
kind notice of us. Miss Hannah joins with me in 
most grateful acknowledgments." 

Sir William writes, March 15th : " I observe by your 
letter that you are exceedingly surprised that I did not 
know the reason that the family affair, so long pending, 
was delayed ; but what I wrote you is certainly true ; 
and if ever my son will do an ill thing I cannot help it, 
nor ever can or will pretend to justify it ; and if he 
never marries I will never say so much to him about it 
as I have said. I do think, so far as I have been 



196 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

enabled, that I have discharged my duty to him. It is 
certain that he has laid out upwards of ten thousand 
pounds in a house, contrary to what I should have 
advised, but considerable of that I gave him, beside the 
twenty-eight thousand I mentioned, and my design 
was, that if he should marry, I should give him land 
that would be an immediate income, but if he does 
not, I look upon myself to be the best judge how to 
dispose of my estate, and shall act accordingly as long 
as it shall please the Most High to preserve my reason 
and senses. It is true that he has met with consider- 
able losses in his trade, but from what I know, his 
interest sent abroad is safe, that he has upwards of 
thirty thousand pounds, old tenor, in trade ; considering 
that he has wharves, warehouses, etc., fitted to his 
hand, I think it is a handsome fitting out, and if he 
behave himself well, as long as I am able I shall be 
doing for him.- I always thought that you would be 
doing all in your power for all your children, and I 
know that you are able ; but as every thing in this life 
is uncertain, if Providence should order it that you 
could not give Miss Hannah any thing, I say if this 
should be the case (though I hope it never will), I 
should be freely willing my son should marry her, and 
I cannot think he will ever be happy in this life if he 
don't, nor can expect a blessing; but I hope he soon 
will, and not expose himself and friends to unfriendly 
remarks. If you knew the trouble it gives me to write, 
you would readily excuse me from enlarging. 

" Mrs. Pepperrell joins with me in best respects to 
yourself and family, and in particular to Miss Hannah. 

" I am truly, dear Sir, your faithful and most humble 
servant, Wm. Pepperrell." 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 197 

General Waldo writes to Sir William again : — 

Boston, March 20, 1748. 

Your generous declarations respecting the depending 
match between your son and my daughter Hannah, I 
greatly esteem, and am much obliged to you for. I hope 
all impediments to a consummation will soon end in 
their mutual happiness, and to the satisfaction of their 
respective friends, as well as the mortification of those 
who are foes to every one. The sum you mention to 
be in Mr. Pepperrell's hands is undoubtedly a pretty 
fortune in itself, and beyond all dispute a handsome 
outset, and if success attend his endeavors, he may 
soon make a good figure among the busy part of the 
world. Your further generous intentions towards him' 
will yet further distinguish as well as advantage him, 
and your advice occasionally will be of no small im- 
portance in the pursuit of business ; and though I have 
no reason to suspect his honor in the pending affair, 
yet the delay (the consequence of which is not to be 
foreseen) must be very disagreeable to us. Your own 
concern for the issue of it will excuse my anxiety for 
the future welfare as well as present peace and honor 
of my daughter, toward which it is my duty to con- 
tribute my best endeavors. 

Miss Hannah joins with me in acknowledgment of 
your and Lady Pepperrell's kind notice of her, and in 
our best respects. 

Isaac Winslow, who married Miss Hannah's sister, 
writes to Andrew Pepperrell : — 

Boston, May 3, 1748. 

" Dear Sir, — I am sorry I am out of my guess that 
you would have an epistle from your dear friend. But 

17* 



198 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

that you have not, I dare say is owing to nothing more 
than a superior modesty. I hope your business will 
admit of your seeing us sooner than June. Consider 
that after that comes hot weather, and I hope you will 
give us the pleasure of your company sooner. I have 
thoughts this month of showing Mrs. Winslow Rhode 
Island, and I would fain prevail on my sister Hannah 
to accompany us, but can't yet do it. If we could also 
have the pleasure of your company, we should make a 
delightful tour of it, and I wish you would contrive to 
be here by the middle of this month." Again, May 
9th, after a few lines on business, in answer to a letter, 
.he writes : " I am much obliged to you for your invi- 
't;ation to visit Kittery, and hope it will not be long 
before we see you here, that we may have the pleasure 
of returning under your convoy. I had the pleasure of 
vdrinking your health last evening at my father Waldo's, 
about 10 o'clock. It was at that time when your dear 
Miss Hannah drank the toast, with the usual becoming 
ablush on her countenance. She desired me to send you 
her compliments," etc. Again, May 29th, after a few 
lines on business, he says : " The month of June is very 
near, and I shall then hope for the pleasure of seeing 
you here. Miss Hannah gave us the pleasure of her 
company last night, and is very well. We drank your 
health." Sept. 20. — " Miss Hannah is well, and gives 
her service to you." 

Early in the autumn of 1748, Mr. Pepperrell and 
Miss Waldo were published; soon after which he 
was attacked with a lingering fever, which left him 
feeble and dispirited, the more so from the loss of prop- 
erty at sea. 

Sir William writes to General Waldo : — 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 199 

Kittery, December 16, 1748. 

Dear Sir, — Your favors of the 5th and 12th inst. 
are received. I make no doubt but you will meet with 
many friends in England. I wish you were safe there. 
I am tired with winter journeys ; should be glad I could 
contribute any thing toward building the proposed fort 
at Penobscot, but I am tired of trying. If Andrew 
would go and be married, I would willingly undertake 
one winter journey more; but he has got a vessel 
which he will endeavor to fit out this winter, contrary 
to my advice, which I am afraid will make him sick 
again. 

I am afraid I shall lose the post, and cannot enlarge. 
Mrs. Pepperrell joins with me in best respects to your- 
self, Miss Hannah, etc. W. P. 

Colonel "Waldo replies : — 

Sir, — It would give me the greatest pleasure to wait 
on you and Lady Pepperrell, and all the good family, 
upon the particular occasion, that of your son's marry- 
ing, which would induce you to take a winter journey, 
if the only impediment thereto is what you quote, that of 
the intended equipment of a vessel for the sea. I should 
think that could stand in no competition with the 
grand affair of a settlement for life, which he has been 
now nearly two years engaged in, and it gives me no 
small concern, as the honor of either of the parties, as 
well as my own, are engaged therein, it should be 
seemingly in suspense ; the many rascally stories that 
are industriously bruited gives great amusement to 
some ill-natured persons among us, and no small 
chagrin to the friends of either party. 



200 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

My daughter Hannah makes her acknowledgments 
for yours and Lady Pepperrell's favorable regards to 
her, and I beg that mine may accompany them, and 
that you may be assured that I am your most faithful 
and obedient servant, S. Waldo. 

Sir William writes again, March, 1749, from Kittery : 
" Mrs. Pepperrell joins with me in your wish that the 
alliance between our son and your daughter were 
completed, which I do think would be a satisfaction to 
all their friends, and a means of putting a stop to the 
talk of their enemies, as there are none without some. 
As I have often urged him to finish the affair, and he 
has declined to let me know the time designated, I have 
no thoughts of mentioning it to him again." 

The delay, as will appear presently, was prolonged 
nearly two years after the date of this letter. 

Sir William sends his friend Warren from Kittery 
by the mast-ship Hastings, his usual present of a quintal 
of dun-fish, and another of cusk, and writes, Nov. 28, 
1748: — 

As we understand Louisburg is to be delivered up to 
the former owners, I could wish something might be 
done for Nova Scotia, by fortifying and settling it with 
good Protestants, which, by prudent management, 
might bring the Indians to be our friends. I am sensi- 
ble you have New England much at heart, and that 
nothing will be wanting in your power for the service 
and security of it. 

This will be delivered you by Major Gil man and 
Captain Joseph Sherburn, whom you knew at Louis- 
burg to be very serviceable in the expedition. They 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBUEG. 201 

were likewise bound on the expedition to Canada. 
I know you love to reward good actions, and to help 
men to justice, and I hope you will serve these gentle- 
men. As the ships are unmooring I cannot enlarge, 
but am, with the utmost respect, honorable and dear 
Sir, your faithful and most obedient humble servant, 

W. P. 

[From Commodore Warren. J 

December, 1748. 

I have received several of your favors, which should 
have been sooner answered if my time had allowed me. 
I am extremely glad to hear of 3^our and all my friends' 
health on your side of the water, and wish it were 
more in my power than it is, to show my regard for 
them. I presume ere this will reach you, the forty gun 
ship will be finished. If you have as much trouble 
and expense in passing accounts of disbursements for 
her as we have with those for Louisburg, you will have 
a bad time of it, for I don't find they are a jot for- 
warder than when first put into the offices, though at a 
very considerable expense to us both, and more must 
follow, or that fortress will lie over us and our posterity. 
I will this winter exert myself about it. I presume one 
of the consequences of giving up Cape Breton will be 
the breaking the two New England regiments. Many 
of marines are already broke here, so that the peace is 
looked upon to be well founded. God grant it may be 
advantageous to our country I Mr. Green, I believe, 
has been very diligent, and I think has sent every thing 
in his power home to facilitate the passing our accounts. 
What will become of him, and all the gentlemen whose 
dependence was, on Louisburg being kept in our posses- 



202 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

sion ? * I wish you health and happiness, and I think you 
enjoy more of the latter than we do here ; and that it 
may never be lessened to you is the sincere wish of, my 
good old friend, 

Your most humble servant, 

Peter Warren. 
My wife and Nancy desire to be kindly remembered 
to you. 

Sir William's long practical education and constant 
intercourse with all classes of men, gave him a clear 
perception and accurate judgment of character, and of 
the springs and motives of human action, which no 
doubt contributed in a great degree to his success in 
wielding so extensive an influence among the people 
at large. His accurate estimate of character is observ- 
able in his selections of intimate and confidential friends. 
With the clergy, far and near, who were highly edu- 
cated and influential, he was on the most cordial terms. 
Governors Belcher of Massachusetts and Wolcott of 
Connecticut, he loved and honored. Waldo, his inti- 
mate associate in various offices through life, was 
among his most confidential friends. Meserve, of the 
New Hampshire regiment, and Hill, of Berwick, were 
ever in high favor with him, and Bradstreet, the lieu- 
tenant-colonel of his own regiment at the siege, he 
omitted no opportunity to serve and promote. These 
men were every way worthy of his esteem, friendship, 
and confidence. He regarded Bradstreet as a proteg^ 
of rare promise, and destined to arrive at gi-eat dis- 
tinction as a military chieftain, which eventually 
proved true. 

* Mr. Green was appointed to office in Halifax on the surrender 
of Louisburg to France. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 203 

He writes to him, December 22, 1748, acknowledging 
the receipt of several of his letters, and adds : — 

It very much surprised me that you have received 
but one letter from me the summer past. I assure 
you that I have written several and sent them to 
Boston to be forwarded, and there is no one can 
take greater pleasure to hear from another than 
I do from you, and to rejoice at your prosperity, 
which T shall always do all in my power to contribute 
to. I often mention you to our good friend Sir Peter 
Warren. I have no account as yet of our regiment's 
being disbanded. Some think it will be ordered to 
Nova Scotia. If so, and you were to be with me in 
such a post as I wish you, I should feel very indifferent 
about selling, but we must le^ve all these things to 
Him that rules and governs all, and makes peace or 
war. I observe what you write about Colonel Ellison. 
It is true that when I was last at Louisburg, he did 
mention purchasing my commission to me, but never 
offered me any sum^ neither did I ever ask him. If the 
regiment should be disbanded I doubt not there will be 
half-pay ; and if liberty could be obtained for the dis- 
posal, I would rather sell and should prefer to be quite 
clear of pay and all. 

What you write about your being pleased that I 
came off so well in England respecting money affairs, 
I am too well acquainted with you to doubt of your 
being sincere in, and I hope I shall never desire any 
thing but what is right and just. I sincerely wish you 
and yours the best of blessings, and shall always rejoice 
at an opportunity to serve you. My wife and son send 
their best respects to yourself and lady, etc. 

I am, dear Sir, your faithful and most obedient 
humble servant, W^. P. 



204 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Sir William was confined with rheumatism during 
February and March, 1749. He writes to General 
Waldo, March 29, thanking him for the friendly concern 
shown for his recovery, and says, " through God's mercy 
I am now so far recovered as to be able to walk out of 

doors." "I now find there are orders 

sent to Louisburg for the disbanding of Colonel Shir- 
ley's and my regiments, which is no more than I ex- 
pected." 

Governor Hopson notifies him of the disbanding of 
the regiment forthwith, on the arrival of transports to 
remove them, and urges him in friendly terms to send 
money to enable the non-commissioned officers and 
privates to pay their debts before embarking. He 
replies : " I have always been fond of your opinion, and 
shall endeavor to follow it. My design was to wait on 
your Excellency by this conveyance, but considering 
that the regiment is disbanded and that you daily 
expect the French there to retake possession, 
^H^q^ and as his Majesty's ship America is this day to 
be launched, and as I have had directions from 
the Right Honorable the Lords Commissioners of the 
Admiralty to assist in completing the ship, etc., you 
will be pleased to excuse me ; but it will give me a 
vast pleasure to wait on your Excellency here. In 
respect to supply of money I now send to Colonel 
Mercer one thousand four hundred and twenty heavy 
dollars which I have found very scarce and with great 
difficulty to be had, and very dear, costing fifty, fifty- 
one, and fifty-two shillings each in our currency. If 
Colonel Mercer had drawn on me, it would have been a 
saving to the crown. If your Excellency should order 
away the transports with soldiers belonging to these 
partSj the same conveyance might bring what things I 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 205 

have at Louisburg to this port, which would lay me 
under new obligations to you," etc., etc. 

[To Governor Shirley.] 

Kittery, July 10, 1749. 

Sir, — The inclosed is a petition that came to me 
from the poor condemned prisoner in York goal (jail) 
which he desired me to forward to your Excellency. I 
am afraid he is not prepared to die, but as you are wise 
and merciful and know the worth of souls, I shall be 
silent. 

I should be glad of the form of your Excellency's 
recruiting accounts. As I have advanced several thou- 
sand pounds' of my own money, I want to have mine 
finished. W. P. 

[Answer.] 

Boston, July 17, 1749. 

Sir, — I am favored with yours by last post, inclosing 
Dearing's ])etition ; and have thereupon ordered the 

secretary to make out a reprieve for him to the of 

September, , which I hope he will improve, to pre- 
pare himself for a better death, than I fear from the 
heinous, unnatural offence for which he is condemned, 
his life has been. However, I shall pay so much 
further regard to his petition, since he there insinuates 
that the court and jury were deceived by the evidence 
produced against him, as to inquire into the circum- 
stances of it from the judges. 

As to the recruiting accounts. Sir William, I hope 
you will continue to be of opinion that our agreeing in 
every circumstance of our settling them for our respec- 
tive regiments, is absolutely necessary towards our pro- 
curing their allowance without difficulty, which is a 

18 



206 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

matter that most highly concerns us not only in point 
of interest but reputation ; the latter of which, as it 
has already been assailed most ungratefully and dis- 
honorably by our subalterns, I think we have sufficient 
notice given us to guard against them and all others in 
this most material point — and I hope, therefore, you 
will not think this can be done without a mutual con- 
sultation and advisement with each other in every point, 
that we may conform and settle the accounts in the 
best manner, which cannot possibly be done without 
an interview of two or three days ; and I hope you will 
not fail to do me the favor to let me see you at Boston 
to-morrow — come in a fortnight at furthest, which is the 
day before the assembly meets, by which time I shall 
be ready for you with all my accounts prepared. 

Since my seeing you, I have obtained the king's 
leave to absent myself from my government for a year 
from the 10th of last April, which I am determined to 
embrace this fall. Hope I shall see you on August 1st. 

Yours, etc., 

William Shirley. 

[Reply of Sir William.] 

Jahj 21, 1749. 

Your Excellency's favor of the 17th instant I received, 
and likewise Dearing's reprieve which I shall send to 
the sheriff. As to the recruiting accounts, I have no 
thoughts of doing any thing with them without consult- 
ing yourself. I shall endeavor to be in Boston at the 
time you mention. Wishing you and yours the best 
of heaven's blessings, I am, etc., etc., 

W. P. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 207 



[From Sir Peter Warren.] 

Portsmouth, August 13, 1749. 

" I would not, by any means, though much hurried, 
omit assuring you of the perfect regard I have for you. 

This conveyance carries the money voted by parlia- 
ment for reimbursing your Province, and I hope sincerely 
that it will have a good effect, by establishing and keep- 
ing a silver medium of trade among you. I have ex- 
erted myself in every necessary shape to get the money 
away to you." 

William Bollen, who married a daughter of Governor 
Shirley, was sent to England to solicit reimbursement 
of Louisburg expenses, which, with the joint agency of 
Commodore Warren, was obtained, after three years' 
toilsome and anxious service, and amounted to the sum 
of ^183,649 sterling, or $800,000. It arrived in the shape 
of six hundred and fifty-three thousand ounces of silver, 
and ten tons of copper. " The money was landed on 
Long Wharf, placed in wagons, and carried through the 
streets with much rejoicing, and was divided between 
the four New England colonies. New Hampshire, Mas- 
sachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, Massachu- 
setts, including Maine, receiving most of it. New 
Hampshire being entitled to about $16,000." The paper 
currency of Massachusetts, previously reduced to the 
rate of seven to eight for one in silver, was now 
redeemed at a rate about one fifth less than the current 
value. 

It was the opinion of both Shirley and Pepperrell, that 
the New England vessels of war which were at Louis- 
burg when the rich prizes were captured, were entitled 
to a share of the prize money equally with Warren's 



208 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPEREELL. 

ships. But little or nothing was ever received. Shirley 
writes to Pepperrell on the subject: — 

I wish you joy of the delivery of the Prov- 
Sept. 4, j^^ces' money to Sir Peter Warren and aarent 

1749. -^ ^ 

Bollen, and desire you would let me know by 
the return of the post, whether you sent any power to 
Mr. Bollen to claim a share of the South-sea-man 
which was taken by the Chester, and others of the 
king's ships and Fletcher, as you proposed to me 
to do upon my mentioning it to you frequently at 
Louisburg, and whether if you did, it ever reached 
Mr. Bollen. 

I hope this will find your family and self perfectly 
well, who will ever have my best wishes for their health 
and happiness. W. Shirley. 

[To Peter Kenwood, his merchant in Enghind.] 

Piscataqua, August 29, 1749. 

Sir, — Your favor of 3d of March and 11th of April 
last I received. 

Louisburg is delivered up to the French, and the 
English are settling Chebucto (Halifax) on Nova Scotia 
side, and I hear they go on bravely. I hope it will make 
a fine colony of Protestants and good subjects. Land 
is good, and mast timber abundant. I have no thoughts 
of entering again into trade. As my son Andrew Pep- 
perrell is in trade, you may recommend any of your 
friends to him ; I will be bound for him. 

My regiment is disbanded, and I design to turn 
farmer. I am sure I spent a good part of my estate in 
the reduction of Louisburg. I am obliged to you for 
your wish that I might be governor, but you know I am 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 209 

a wes-countryman, (meaning Wales,) and they dislike 
to put such men in for governors. I should be glad you 
would make my compliments to my nephew* Frost's 
lady, and all inquiring friends. My wife and children 
desire to be remembered to you. 

With much respect, W. P. 

* Honorable George Frost of Durham, M. C, the son of Honorable 
John Frost of Newcastle, who married Sir "William's sister. Mr. 
Frost had married in London, and left his wife there. 



18 



210 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



CHAPTER X. 

The Province of New Hampshire was annexed to 
Massachusetts in 1641, and continued so, under one 
governor. Belcher was the last appointed over the two 
provinces, each of which had a lieutenant-governor. In 
1741 the provinces were separated, Shirley being ap- 
pointed governor of Massachusetts, and Benning Went- 
worth, of New Hampshire. 

Governor B. Wentworth, son of the former lieutenant- 
governor, had been engaged in trade, and became emi- 
nent as a merchant. He contracted with an agent of 
the Spanish government to supply it with a large qvian- 
tity of the best oak timber, to the amount of fifty or 
sixty thousand dollars, and borrowed the money in Lon- 
don to enable him to fulfil the contract. The timber was 
delivered, but the Spanish court refused payment, and 
he in vain sought redress there. On his homeward 
voyage his ship foundered, and he with his crew saved 
their lives by taking to the boat. He at length repre- 
sented his case to the British Court, and solicited aid in 
obtaining redress. Negotiations were commenced, but 
did not succeed, and the war between the two nations 
destroyed his expectations of receiving his pay. Mr. 
Wentworth then, through the assistance of his friend 
Mr. Thomlinson, colonial agent, applied for the govern- 
ment of New Hampshire, and obtained it. Having 
received his commission, he embarked for this country. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 211 

and arrived in Portsmouth the 12th of December, amidst 
the acclamations of a large concourse of people, who 
had assembled to welcome him as governor. 

While in Spain and England he corresponded with 
Pepperrell and acted sometimes as his mercantile agent. 
He afterwards, as we have seen, cooperated with Shir- 
ley and Pepperrell in forwarding the expedition against 
Louisburg, and aided the latter in his contract for build- 
ing a forty-four gun ship for the crown. 

Wentworth had created disaffection in his province 
by sending wnrits to new towns set off from Massachu- 
setts for the choice of representatives. These were ex- 
cluded from the legislature by the other representatives 
from the old towns. The British court instructed him 
to dissolve the assembly and call a new one, and to send 
writs to those towns again, whose representatives had 
been excluded, and to protect them in their legislative 
privileges. The assembly, notwithstanding, excluded 
them again, and arrayed themselves against the gov- 
ernor in other measures, so as quite to obstruct legisla- 
tion and injure the public interest. They petitioned 
the king for Wentworth's removal, and requested Sir 
William to use his influence at court to obtain the 
otfice. The petition was sent to Mr. Thomlinson, 
provincial agent in London for New Hampshire, who 
advised not to present it, for the reason that the gov- 
ernor had followed the king's instructions. Pepperrell, 
in reply to their request, both before and after he sailed, 
was strictly non-committal, though very civil. The 
office would doubtless have been very acceptable to 
him, but in spite of the importunities of his son Spar- 
hawk, which will appear presently, he probably felt 
unwilling to supplant Governor Wentworth. 

Sir William embarked for London late in September, 



212 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

1749, and about the same time sailed Governor Shirley, 
who, with M. Galissoniere, governor of Canada, were 
appointed, by their respective governments, commis- 
sioners to settle the disputed boundary line between the 
French and English in Nova Scotia. General Waldo 
also sailed soon after Pepperrell with his two sons 
Frank and Ralph, the former to be educated in Paris, 
and the latter to remain with him in London, where 
the general expected to be detained some time in set- 
tling private claims, and probably in soliciting favor 
from the court. On Sir William's arrival he was cor- 
dially received and entertained during his stay at the 
house of his friend and agent, both mercantile and 
military, Mr. Kilby, at Spring Gardens. His old com- 
panion in arms, Sir Peter Warren, residing at West- 
bury, soon made his appearance in London to welcome 
his arrival. Both he and General Waldo were received 
also at Mr. Kilby's, and had a favorable opportunity to 
review former scenes at Louisburg. They were soon 
presented at court, where King George II. gave Sir 
William a cordial reception, and bestowed high enco- 
miums on his services at the siege. On expressing a 
desire to render him some service, Sir William replied 
that protection to the fisheries, in which he was employ- 
ing many hundred of his Majesty's dutiful subjects, 
~was the chief favor he had to solicit. The Prince of 
Wales sought frequent interviews for conversation, and 
bestowed upon him many civilities, as did Lord Halifax 
-and other noblemen. The mayor of London waited 
on him, and caused a service of plate to be raised and 
presented as a token of respect for his military services. 
He was invited to see the public institutions of the city 
by their respective governors, and was made a guest at 
the tables of the nobility, while the impression occa- 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 213 

sioned by the victory at Louisburg made him an object 
of universal interest everywhere among the people. 

He remained in London mitil the close of the follow- 
ing summer, frequently receiving letters from home. It 
is believed that none of these are preserved, excepting 
some from his son-in-law Colonel Sparhawk, extracts 
of which will be introduced, in order to give some idea 
of what was passing at home. 

Silas Hooper, his old commercial agent in Plymouth, 
addressed him a complimentary letter on his past 
services, and inquires what are his future plans in 
respect to trade, to which he replies : — 

I am sensible that the brave men raised in three of 
the colonies in New England, all of whom I had the 
honor to command, were the means of the reduction of 
Cape Breton, and several gentlemen have mentioned to 
me, as you are pleased to write, that this victory has 
produced us a peace ; may it be good and lasting. As 
to past services, they are often forgotten, and as I am a 
disbanded officer, I design soon to return to New Eng- 
land ; but as to entering into trade, I have no thoughts 
of it. My son, Andrew Pepperrell, a merchant in Pas- 
cataqua, is in my former business; I have likewise a 
son-in-law, Nathaniel Sparhawk, Esquire, a merchant 
there, to whom I will mention your house. 

I am obliged to you for your congratulation on my 
safe arrival in London. Yours of the 19th of August 
last I have not had the pleasure to receive. The kind 
present you mention, should it never come to hand, my 
obligations to you for it are none the less, and for which 
you will please to accept my hearty thanks. 

Ever happy to serve you, I am, with great esteem, 
Sir, your most obedient and humble servant, 

W. P. 



214 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



[Extracts from letters written to Sir William from Nathaniel Sparhawk, 
Esquire, soon after Sir William sailed.] 

Kittery, September 24, 1749. 

Honored and dear Sir, — I hope this will find you 
(through the great goodness of God to you and your 
family) safe arrived at London, and that you will have 
found favor with the king and his ministry, and a kind 
reception from mankind in general, but especially with 
all you may be more immediately concerned, and that 
you will always enjoy the kind influences of heaven to 
preserve your life and health, to assist, direct, and to 
succeed you in all your laudable undertakings, both 
public and private. There has little occurred since you 
left New England that I think it material to advise you 
of. What relates to the public. Brigadier- General 
Waldo will easily recollect when you meet. As to 
your private affairs, my brother, to whom I conclude 
you have committed the care of them, will doubtless 
communicate to you what may be needful. 

I have, a day or two past, had a conversation with 
Mr. Odiorne of Portsmouth, and he tells me that it is 
proposed by him and some other of your friends, that 
all the leading people, a certain family only excepted, 
(referring to the Wentworths,) in the province of New 
Hampshire, should sign a letter to you praying that 
you will use your interest to get the government. . . 
Such is the unhappy state of that people, and such is 
the dislike of the great family to you and yours, which 
is increased now to a degree that denominates them 
our proper enemies ; that I should imagine, all things 
considered, that nothing would be wanting to push 
your interests to the utmost if need be, to obtain the 
government. Mr. Odiorne tells me they (the Went- 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 215 

worths) were exceedingly shocked at your sudden de- 
parture, and that it is evident they have the greatest 
apprehensions from your voyage. However, they can- 
not help showing their teeth, an instance of which I 
beg leave to mention. The morning you sailed, it was 
discovered that William Bearing, who was reprieved 
partly by your intercession with Governor Shirley, had 
broke jail, and it was soon industriously reported 
among your good friends at Portsmouth, that he was 
doubtless gone in the mast-ship, and that you ought to 
have the credit of his escape, etc. This I think it my 
duty to tell you ; but inasmuch as this and many other 
things plainly show how we should be treated, if in the 
power of some, it would lead almost any man to 
endeavor to get as far removed from it as possible, to 
unhorse them at least, if he did n't himself take their 
place. But I would not trouble you further on this 
subject at present. 

I would take leave to pray your remembrance of me, 
as a branch of your family, in respect of any business 
you may be able to influence the negotiation of in rela- 
tion to New England, and I make no doubt that as 
there is not the least prospect of any masts being got in 
the contract this winter, you might, for a price little less 
than what is given in England, take an order from the 
commissioners of the navy to procure a number of 
ship loads on the king's account, to be delivered here to 
the king's ships, which might call for them as they go 
home yearly from Virginia, the West Indies, Chebucto, 
etc., and be little or no expense to the crown, whereas 
the freight they pay to the contractors is very considera- 
ble. Besides, if the Board of Ordnance knew that the 

Messrs. A ..... p and H k had no share in the 

expedition to Louisburg, and have got more money by 



216 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

it, than anybody else, that was upon it, it might be 
thought reasonable that your family should have the 
supply of Chebucto (Halifax) and Newfoundland, 
rather than they. 

But beside these public things, there will be great 
opportunities of your recommending private gentlemen 
that may want ships, fish, etc. ; I say. Sir, that a share 
of your notice on these occasions I should esteem as a 
token of your parental regard and affection for your 
family, which you must be sensible is large and expen- 
sive ; nor have you any reason, I hope, to question, 
from seven years' experience of my conduct, my 
answering your recommendations of me, or my making 
a good use of any advantages that might accrue to me 
through your influence, to which I shall only add, that 
you may always be sure of my most grateful returns, 
and that, as my partnership will soon be closed, no 
stranger can reap any benefit with me, but that all the 
effects of your goodness to me will centre in the happi- 
ness of my own family." 

At a subsequent date he says : — 

Mr. Odiorne and several other of your friends have, 
on behalf of a great number of the most influential 
people in New Hampshire, formed an address to you, 
which they were so good as to send me a copy of, 
wherein they have earnestly entreated you to accept of 
the government of that province, and it is very likely by 
this opportunity you will receive the same signed by a 
very large number of gentlemen, beside many private 
letters on the same occasion ; and I beg you will excuse 
me if I say, that seeing your family is situated in trade 
so near that government, and those in power there at 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBUB.G. 217 

present are far from being well disposed to us and our 
interests, and considering, too, what a vast public bless- 
ing you might be to the interest of the dissenting church, 
which receives no encouragement from the present ad- 
ministration, and also to the civil interests of that people, 
I say, Sir, that, inasmuch as so many advantages, public 
and private, civil and religious, will be the happy con- 
sequence of yoar accepting the commission, what in- 
ducement greater can you possibly have ? But I submit 
the matter, with a sincere petition to Heaven for an 
event that will contribute so much to the happiness of a 
great number of his Majesty's subjects, as well as to 
many of our friends, and add vastly to my private satis- 
faction in life. In case you should have this mark of 
his Majesty's favor, you may, I doubt not, for your 
colonel's commission purchase the surveyor's post, which 
as your years advance, I should think would be a more 
genteel and agreeable thing to you. Mr. Colman and I 
have at last agreed, under hand, to part the 31st March, 
next, and we are each of us writing and soliciting our 
friends separately in respect of business, and whatsoever 
is addressed to either of us separately after this our 
agreement, whether it arrives to us before or after the 
31st March, is to be for the sole use and benefit of him 
to whom it is so addressed. Therefore, if you should be 
so good as to recommend any thing for me in the way of 
trade, to any of yours or my friends, I must beg it may 
be in my name only. 

It is a satisfaction to me, that I can inform you, that 
when Mr. Colman and I shall part, we shall not have a, 
shilling to remit any of our friends, and that we shall have^ 
for young men, something handsome to divide. I am 
now writing several of my friends for a supply of goods 
on my own account, and if I should determine to embark 

19 



218 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

for London in the spring, Mr. Cutt, who is a very sober 
man, and very capable and honest, will have the care of 
my warehouse in my absence, in which I shall think 
myself safe and happy. 

The death of Mrs. Balston, much lamented, has had 
an ill effect on my mother Pepperrell's health and 
spirits, together with your absence, and I could wish, if 
only on her account, though I have many other motives, 
that we could once be so happy as to hear of your safe 
arrival, and your escape of or recovery from the small- 
pox, and that there was a prospect of your speedy return 
to us. In the mean time, I believe you may depend 
that nothing in the power of any of us will be wanting 
to alleviate her grief and promote her comfort and hap- 
piness. I have the pleasure now to acquaint you that 
she is with us on a kind visit. Mrs. Sparhawk did her- 
self the honor of writing you from Boston. 

Again he writes : " The New Hampshire 
March 8, address to you I hope will prevail on you to 
relieve that distressed people. I did not hint to 
you that you will not be safe in trusting Mr. Thomlin- 
son with any of your schemes, as whatever may be pre- 
tended, he is certainly in an opposite interest. It is 
reported here that the late province of Maine is likely 
to be a separate government, and that you are to have 
a commission for it, but this is credited but by few. It 
is generally hoped and wished that you may have New 
Hampshire, by some, Massachusetts. But all things 
considered, especially how much more difficult the 
administration would be at Boston than at New 
Hampshire; the situation of your family and estate, 
I should think the latter much more eligible. The 
surveyor's post will be to be purchased, and I should 
think it well worth your notice. If you decline it, 1 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 219 

should be glad of it at twelve thousand pounds sterling, 
one half to be paid upon advice of the purchase, and 
the rest in six months after. I mean the surveyorship 
of the woods. 

" Our parish have passed a vote for a division, which 
is to be made equally as to quantity and quality of soil. 
Mr. Stevens will be settled with us. You may remem- 
ber you have proposed that Tate and Brady's version 
should be used in our church, and in order to it that 
you would give a number of them to the congregation ; 
this I thought I would hint to you, and that if you 
would bring Mr. Stevens a handsome preaching Bible, 
it would be very acceptable to him. The cones of pine 
for Lord Edgecomb are provided, and shall be sent. 

" The love affair between Andrew Pepperrell and 
Miss Waldo, now of four years' duration, is still pend- 
ing, much to the annoyance of both families as well as 
trying to the patience of the young lady." 

Stephen Mhiot, a merchant of Boston and a relative 
of Waldo, writes to Andrew : " I hope, my 
friend, it will not be lons^ before we have the ,^"^,^' 
pleasure of seeing you in town to disappoint 
the enemies as well as to complete the approaching 
pleasure which you have in view, in enjoying the 
society of so charming and desirable a lady as is Miss 
Hannah. I beg leave only to add, that could you be 
fully acquainted with the steady and proper behavior in 
your long absence (amid the ill-natured queries of the 
world with respect to each of you) it would ever 
heighten your affections for her, and endear her to you 
as it has done to me, and all her relations and friends 
here. I really wish each of you, as I believe you will 
be, happy, if it shall please God to bring you together 
in the matrimonial state." 



220 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

The following comical letter, though unworthy of a 
place in sober biography, may serve as an interlude to 
some readers who are wearied with the foregoing dry 
narrative of incidents in Sir William's career ; and its 
insertion is perhaps excusable as shedding light upon 
the customs and fashions prevailing a century ago, and 
upon the convivial turn of some branches of Sir Wil- 
liam's family. William Tyler, the writer, was his 
nephew, and a clerk in his father's store in Boston. 
Joel Whittemore, another nephew, and a lieutenant on 
half-pay living at Kittery Point; and the recipient of the 
letter, was the son of Sir William. We may imagine 
the appearance of these dashing blades in cocked hats, 
laced waistcoats, and powdered wigs. The lady alluded 
to, was Miss Hannah Waldo to whom young Pepper- 
rell had been three or four years engaged. 

[To Andrew Peppcrrell, Esquire, Kittery Point.] 

Boston, August 14, 1750. 

Sir Andrew, — Per post I'm informed you are well, 
which gives me a dish of pleasure. I hope honest Joel 
got home safe after his secret expedition here to Boston, 
for he was plotting something, and I am afraid it is 
against ye State or y^ Church, therefore, as you are one 
of his Majesty's justices of the peace, make no doubt 
but you will strictly inquire into the affair. So I would 
inform your Honor that which he did in Boston, from 
his first arrival to his departure. May it please your 
Honor what I write is the truth, and if your Honor 
desire, Pll swear to it. 

Joel Whittemore arrived here at half after one. Ate 
a good dinner of salt-fish, drank good punch, but poor 
cyder. Then smoked a pipe, came into the shop and 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 221 

never was out of my sight the whole afternoon (here 's 
plotting). Saturday evening after the shop was shut 
we sat down together and drank the health of the night, 
talked of you and the rest of our Kittery friends. Then 
smoaked another pipe, drank another bowl of punch, and 
at eleven he and I went to bed, and he never rose till 
ten o'clock Sunday morning. At half after ten drank 
coffee, ate toast and butter, and then everybody being at 
meeting and all silent, we talked about keeping chariots, 
and he burst out all at once with these traitorous words, 
namely, "if I had but one half of Sir William's money," 
says he, " I should live like a king." This makes me 
think he has some designs upon your honor. But to 
go on, — I took the Church Prayerbook, which I had 
not looked in for six months before, and I read him 
over the service of the forenoon, and I played upon the 
organ, and he said Amen. There 's treason. This 
makes me think he wants to have the Church of Eng- 
land established at the Point. I hope your Honor takes 
notice; when the service was over we had some punch 
and ate our dinner. In the afternoon we went to 
church, and my pew being full I sat next to Mr. Waldo'ei, 
and then he sat and stood looking first this way and 
then that way to find out Miss Hannah. Then he 
beckoned to me to point out where she sat, and I would 
not take any notice but laugh. The people thought 
that the man was crazy. Now Miss Hannah wa'nt at 
meeting, and I wondered what the plague he would 
have me point to. Church being over, we came home 
and passed the afternoon and evening, went to. bed at 
eleven or twelve. He rose at seven, breakfasted, stayed 
at home all day, and so did all the week just as Satur- 
day and Sunday, setting aside going to church, and the 

19* 



222 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

forenoon service. Now, Mr. Justice, is not this some- 
thing extraordinary ? 

Your loving kinsman, 

William Tyler. 
P. S. His wig was powdered to the life. 

Mr. Sparhawk writes from Boston, September 11, 
1750, to Andrew : " I arrived last evening ; have not 
had time to deliver your letter, or to see your lady. Let 
me take the liberty to inform you that the country, 
especially the more worthy and better part of it, are 
very much alarmed at, and appear quite exasperated 
with your conduct relating to your amour, and your 
friends and those that are much attached to your father 
and family, are greatly concerned about you, being fully 
of opinion that if the matter drops through and you 
lie justly under the imputation of it, that your charac- 
ter is irretrievably lost. I am sorry to say so much, but 
a tender concern for you obliges me. You can't im- 
agine how I was attacked in a large company of gen- 
tlemen and ladies at Salem, where I was invited to 
spend the evening on Sunday; and what you may im- 
agine will pass still for a justification of your conduct, 
that you 'intend nothing but honor in the case, and 
will be along soon ' is perfectly ridiculed. I find you 
must be published again if you marry in this province, 
and if you intend ever to marry the lady, my advice to 
you is, by all means to be republished and to finish the 
matter at once, unless you can prevail on the lady to 
meet you at Ipswich, and from there proceed to Hamp- 
ton, which is very much questioned, though when I 
know your intentions it may be attempted, if there is 
occasion, from your ascertaining the lady's mind and 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 223 

her friend's, that you will be quite punctual, and agree 
to the arrangement in case she is good enough to com- 
ply. But I cannot add further than that I feel a real 
concern for your welfare and the support of your 
honor." 

Very little is preserved in writing to show how Sir 
William passed his time in London : most of his letters 
to his family being destroyed. Having concluded to 
return home, he writes to Sir Peter Warren from Spring 
Gardens, as follows : — 

July 31. — I have had the pleasure of receiving 
your favor of the 28th instant, and am greatly obliged 
to you for your kind invitation to Westbury, and for 
the expression that you hoped I had finished my 
business to my satisfaction. 

I have finished nothing more than when you left 
London. As I am sure no man can be happy while 
absent from an agreeable family, which is my case, 
I have taken my passage in a schooner of my son's, 
and did design to go on board in a day or two, but as 
I wish to mention something to you before I leave 
England, I shall order her to Portsmouth, and design 
to take a post-chaise, and in my way to wait on your- 
self. Your kind offer of service, has laid me under 
new obligations, and I know what you say comes from 
a sincere heart. 

My best respects to yourself, lady, and your dear 
little olive branches. I sincerely wish you all the best 
of blessings, and if it should ever be in my power to 
serve any branch of your valuable family, it will give 
me pleasure to do it. 

Your faithful and most obedient W. P. 



224 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

On his return to Kittery, Sir William writes to the 
honorable Josiah Willard, of Boston : — 

October 19. — "On the 9th instant I arrived here, 
being fifty-seven days from London. Sir Peter Warren 
has sent under my care, by the vessel I came in, two 
large black horses, for Massachusetts. I understand 
by him, that the sum paid for them was part of what 
he drew out with Mr. Bollen, the agent, as commis- 
sions on the money received for the Cape Breton expe- 
dition, and which he offered to make a present of to the 
province. He told me he should be glad if the govern- 
ment would make a present of the remainder of the 
commissions, to encourage the Protestant School in 
Ireland. 

" Sir Peter proposed that these horses should be sent 
into several parts of this province, and that every one 
who profited by them should pay the necessary expense 
for their keeping. I think that one third part of the 
forces that went on the expedition to Louisburg, were 
enlisted from Maine. I should be glad if one of the 
horses might be sent there for some time." 

This statement of the large enlistment for the Louis- 
burg expedition is repeated on several occasions. 
Maine won more military fame in this expedition, in 
proportion to her population, than in any or all other 
succeeding wars. 

To Sir Peter Warren, same day : " You will excuse 
brevity, as I arrived here but the 9th instant, and have 
had so many visitors, that my house has been much 
crowded, and much of my time taken up ever since. 
The horses were landed well, although we had a very 
troublesome passage. I have not yet been to Boston, 
but design to go next month. 

" You was pleased to say, when I was last at your 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 225 

house, that you would go to the secretary of war with 
Mr. Kilby in my behalf. You have made me too 
sensible of your readiness to do all in your power to 
serve me. I only mention this to you lest the magni- 
tude of the affairs you are concerned in, should put it 
out of your mind. Your repeated favors have laid me 
under great obligations ; and if it should ever be in my 
power to serve you or yours, it will give me the greatest 
pleasure, to show you that I appreciate your kindness. 

" My wife joins her compliments to yourself and lady, 
and acknowledges her obligation for your kindness to 
herself and husband. W. P." 

On the 29th of October he writes to his 
friend Sir Peter Kenwood : " I am allowed half- 
pay as a colonel, but am sure this wdll not pay the in- 
terest of the money I have expended out of my estate, 
but I have reason to be thankful my lands will main- 
tain me, and I shall endeavor to live a retired life, un- 
less they give me a post of profit. My son has had 
some consignments, and has ordered the building of 
several ships for gentlemen abroad, and has the char- 
acter of a diligent, honest man, which gives me great 
comfort. Remember me to my cousin Frost. Her 
husband [Hon. George Frost of Durham] has been 
sick. He designs to bring her to New England next 
spring." 

Sir William visited his estates in Scarboro, 
1751. 

attended court at Falmouth, where he had some 

important causes for trial, and took a survey of his 

other concerns, that had been long neglected. He wrote 

to General Waldo, in London, that he now had every 

reason to hope that the long talked of alliance of their 

two families would soon be completed, much to the j oy 



226 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

of himself and family ; that the nuptial day was ap- 
pointed, and that his lady and family connections 
anticipated the pleasure of joining in the celebration. 

Miss Waldo was making preparation in a style 
becoming of the occasion, and of the distinguished 
guests that were to attend ; but a few days before the 
one appointed for the wedding arrived, Andrew wrote 
to her that circumstances had occurred which would 
make it necessary to defer it to another day, which he 
named, as more convenient for himself. This was too 
much for her to bear ; her mind was from that moment 
firmly fixed. She returned no answer ; the guests 
from far and near, minister and all, assembled at the 
appointed hour and place, when she enjoyed the sweet 
revenge of telling Andrew that she would not marry 
one who had occasioned her so much mortification, and 
who could not have that love and friendship for her that 
was necessary to her happiness. 

Sir William and lady returned home disappointed 
and chagrined at this result of the affair, which had 
occasioned them such long-continued solicitude ; but 
they felt conscious of having done their duty, and 
doubtless preferred even this form of crisis to further 
procrastinations, knowing as they did, that it had 
already prejudiced the public against the family. 

General Waldo was more seriously disappointed. 
He writes to Sir William from London : — 

I was greatly chagrined at the news of my daughter's 
changing her mind and dismissing your son after the 
visit you mention, which I was apprised of by her, and 
concluded that the affair would have had the issue I 
had long expected and desired, and that the ship which 
brought the unwelcome news of a separation, would 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 227 

have given me the most agreeable advice of its consum- 
mation; but I find she was jealous that Mr. Pepperrell 
had not the love and friendship for her that was neces- 
sary to make her happy. This I understand from her 
letter to me, and that the last promise made when your 
son was in Boston was disregarded by him in not 
returning at the^ period he had fixed. This disappoint- 
ment to a close union with your family, which above all 
things I desired, has given me great uneasiness, and the 
addition thereto will be greater if I should find the fault 
lie on my daughter ; but be that as it may, I should be 
very sorry to have it break friendship between us, or 
any of the several branches of our families; — those of 
yours I assure you I wish as well to as my own, and 
I shall, if ever in my power, convince them of it. 

S. W. 

The young lady enjoyed more consolation than any 
of them. In less than six weeks she was led to the 
altar by Thomas Fluker, Esquire, secretary of the 
province. At the outbreak of the revolution twenty-. 
five years after, Mr. Fluker's loyalty drove him to Eng- 
land. His daughter married General Henry Knox of 
revolutionary renown, and .afterwards secretary of war, 
and through the commanding influence which his mili- 
tary services and political station gave him, he was 
enabled to rescue from confiscation much of the landed 
property which descended to his wife from her grand- 
father General Waldo.* 

Andrew Pepperrell, far from running mad and " fall- 



* A dauffliter of General Knox married Mr. Swan and resided at 
Thomaston, Maine, and after his decease she became the wife of the 
late Honorable John Holmes of Alfred. 



228 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

ing down dead two days after his dismission," as 
writers of romance inform us, passed a quiet winter in 
his counting-room at Kittery, mingling occasionally in 
the gay circles of Portsmouth, and giving much of his 
time to the assistance of his father in administering the 
hospitalities of the family mansion to the many distin- 
guished visitors. His present position before the public 
gaze exposed him to some gossip, and afforded the cen- 
sorious a choice bit of scandal "to roll as a sweet 
morsel under their tongues." His cousin, William 
Tyler, writes him : " Sir Andrew, I received yours by 
last post. I inform you that last Monday evening Miss 
Hannah was married to Mr. Fluker and appeared a 
bride at the West Church, New Boston, brought in her 
chariot. The talk is almost over, for everybody thinks 
and tells me they believe it is what you wanted, but 
more of this when I see you." How much of this was 
administered as a placebo or an anodyne to wounded 
pride doth not appear. 

The probable solution of Andrew's mysterious con- 
duct is, that he would have married in the autumn of 
1748, immediately after being published, but for a long 
protracted sickness which ensued, and was followed by 
heavy losses of property at sea, which produced a set- 
tled state of despondency, and from which he probably 
never entirely recovered ; that having erected an elegant 
house for the lady, as an earnest of his future intentions, 
he deferred the wedding from time to time, occasionally 
visiting and frequently writing to her, hoping that the 
smiles of fortune would return to brighten his prospects; 
and it is not improbable that the impatience and fre- 
quent importunities of both families to hurry the nup- 
tials, though perfectly reasonable, tended to annoy him 
and even to weaken the strength of his attachment. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 229 

Be this as it may, no other lady shared his affections ; 
and it should be mentioned in palliation, that in every 
thing else his conduct through life, in all its relations, 
was exemplary and unexceptionable. The subject has 
been thus dwelt upon partly with the view of correcting 
erroneous accounts hitherto published prejudicial to the 
lady, but more particularly to present the conduct of 
Sir William in a true and proper light, as characterized 
throughout by generosity, candor, and magnanimity. 
The dignified conduct of General Waldo, placed in so 
delicate and trying a relation in the affair, was graceful 
and appropriate, and that of his daughter blameless and 
commendable. 



20 



230 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



CHAPTER XL 

The opponents of Governor Wentworth continued 
restive, and their leader, Honorable Richard Waldron, 
(the grandson of Richard of Dover, who was murdered 
by the Indians,) addressed a letter to Sir William, after 
his return from London, in which he portrayed in lively 
colors the sufferings of the people of New Hampshire 
under its present governor. The following answer is a 
specimen of non-commiUalism, that would compare well 
with the published letters of some modern politicians. 

[To the Honorable Richard Waldron.] 

November 29, 1750. 

Dear Sir, — Yours of the 31st of last month I 
received after my return from Falmouth, and would 
say I am pleased with the generous public spirit that 
appears in yourself and Mr. Sherburne in your concern 
for, and consultations about the distressed state of New 
Hampshire. I should have been very glad to have had 
further conversation with you about your affairs, if it 
might have been of any advantage to you. 

I hope your province is not in such imminent danger 
of ruin as you fear. The Lord, I hope, will interpose, 
and in order for your safety, will rouse your people from 
that indolent state you complain of, if there be occasion 
for it. Hope for the best. 

You are at a stand, you say, about the main question, 
What is to be done? We must stand and wait on 
Providence, when we know not what to do. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 231 

Your kind and honorable thoughts of the man whom 
you seem to have some expectations from, he is much 
obliged to you for, and if Providence should call him to 
so great a trust and charge, as it has strangely led him 
into every thing of a public nature wherein he has 
been hitherto engaged, he would indulge no distrustful 
thought, but that he shall be prepared for it, and if 
fairly introduced will be assisted and carried through it. 

But verily, what you mention of his early entrance 
into public service, his knowledge in some measure of 
your constitution and circumstances, his poor merit for 
his services to the crown, his acquaintance at court, or 
any supposed influence he has, and his worldly posses- 
sions, have he fears but poorly qualified him for a gap- 
man to stand in the breach made in your State affairs ; 
so that, finally, he must leave his good friends to act as 
they think wisest and best, heartily wishing them Divine 
direction, trusting that when their province is prepared 
for such a mercy, relief will be sent from one quarter or 
another. 

With my own and Mrs. Pepperrell's compliments to 
yourself and Madam Waldron, I am, dear Sir, 

Your faithful and most obedient humble servant, 

W. P. 

A particular history of the dissensions between the 
governor and people of New Hampshire, will be found 
in Belknap's history of that State. 

Sir William was surrounded by numerous relatives, 
requiring aid, which, added to his expensive style of 
living, drew heavily on his fortune, already diminished 
by the Louisburg expedition. He was ambitious, how- 
ever, to maintain a style of living suited to his elevated 
rank. He was head of the council, chief justice on the 



232 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

bench, colonel in the royal army, and a Baronet, all 
which necessarily drew many distinguished visitors to 
his house, whom it was his choice as well as duty to 
greet with an elegant reception. His walls were hung 
with costly mirrors and paintings, his sideboards loaded 
with silver, his cellar filled with choice wines, his park 
stocked with deer, a retinue of servants, costly equipage, 
and a splendid barge with a black crew dressed in 
uniform, — all these, especially after his return from 
Europe, were maintained in baronial style. 

But he had an ambition that transcended this, in 
regard to his only son, the heir to his title and estate, 
the main pillar of his house and object of his fondest 
anticipations, — to prepare him to act well his part in 
the elevated sphere in which he appeared destined to 
move, was the all-absorbing object of his ambition, 
and we may reasonably imagine that much of the 
information collected while abroad was, during the 
winter evenings after his return, fondly imparted, min- 
gled with lessons of wisdom suited to his years and 
future necessities. 

But how limited is human foresight ! On the 20th of 
February, Andrew attended a gay party in Portsmouth, 
and in returning across the Pascataqua, late in the 
night, was exposed to the cold air, which, on the day 
following, caused a fever, that soon assumed a typhoid 
character. The best medical aid proved unavailing, 
and the imminent danger of the case was announced 
to his anxious parents. Trembling with alarm and 
dismay, their grief was inconsolable. Despairing of 
human skill, and believing firmly in the special provi- 
dence of God, and that " the prayer of the righteous 
availeth much," and ever deeply impressed with the 
belief that the success at Louisburg was in answer 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 233 

to the earnest pleadings of Christians throughout 
the province, they now implored intercession for an 
afflicted family of all the clergy in the neighboring 
parishes, and a special messenger was sent to the min- 
isters in Boston with the following touching appeal : — 

[To Rev, Dr. Sewall, Mr. Prince, Mr. Eoxcroft, Dr. Chauncy, etc., in 

Boston.] 

Kittery, February 28, 1751. 

Dear Christian Friends : — 

The great and holy, just and good God is come out 
against us in his holy anger. O, may it be fatherly 
anger! He is bringing our sins to remembrance, and 
seems to be slaying our only son. O pray ! pray ! pray ! 
for us, that the Lord would keep us from dishonoring 
his great name in our distress and anguish of soul ; that 
He would support us under, and carry us through, what 
he shall, in his sovereign pleasure, bring upon us, and if 
it be his blessed will, that our child may yet be spared 
to us, and sanctified, and made a blessing. Pity us, O 
our friends, and cry mightily to God for us ! 
We are your distressed friends, 

William Pepperrell, 
Mary Pepperrell. 

P. S. Dear cousin Gerrish, let our case be known 
to Christian friends along the road, and carry this letter 
as soon as you get to town, to each one of the minis- 
ters to whom it is addressed. 

Young Pepperrell died the 1st of March, after a 
sickness of ten days. A large concourse of friends 
attended the funeral, deeply sympathizing with the 
bereaved family. " The afflicted mother, mourning her 
only and beloved son ; the fond sister, deprived of her 

20* 



234 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

accomplished brother ; and the bereaved father, reeling 
under this heaviest blow which his house had ever sus- 
tained, presented a scene of distress truly appalling. 
His earthly hopes were blasted forever." His pillar and 
support was gone, and the old hero commenced prep- 
arations for his own summons, which he felt might be 
near at hand. Many were the letters of condolence 
that poured in upon him, especially from the clergy, 
with whom he was in high favor, and from several 
members of the council board. To one of them, Colonel 
Rowland Cotton, whose letter is beautiful and appro- 
priate, he replies, " I have received your kind and sym- 
pathizing letter on the death of my dear and only son, 
for which I am much obliged to you. I cannot enlarge, 
but must say, with that holy man of old. Have pity upon 
me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends, for the hand of 
God hath touched me. I beg your prayers, and am, dear 
Sir, etc. W. P." 

[Obituary notice taken from the Boston Evening Post.] 

Portsmouth, March 14. On the 1st instant, died, at 
Kittery, at the seat of the Honorable William Pepper- 
rell. Baronet, his only son, Andrew Pepperrell, Esq., 
in the 26th year of his age, and on the 7th instant, his 
remains were interred in a manner suited to the supe- 
rior condition of the family. 

He was a young gentleman happy in his natural 
temper ; cheerful, friendly, and social in his make ; of 
that unaffected sincerity and openness of heart, which 
are the marks of thorough honesty ; not without the 
prudence and caution which proceed from some knowl- 
edge of the world. 

His treatment of mankind was inoffensive and en- 
gaging ; respectful to his superiors ; obliging to his 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 235 

friends and acquaintance, condescending and easy to 
those below him ; free from that assuming and haughty 
behavior towards inferiors, which gives reason to suspect 
want of sense and want of breedhig. But what is yet 
more excellent, it was not in his heart to despise the 
poor ; on the contrary he felt a tender sympathy for 
them, and his unrequested charities frequently pre- 
vented their cries. Such sharers were they of heaven's 
bounty to him, that he might as properly be said to be 
their steivard as benefactor. 

He was allowed by good judges to be happy in the 
powers of his mind ; and had not his inclination led 
him into an extensive trade, in which he was eminent 
for capacity, industry, and integrity, he might have dis- 
tinguished himself by his acquaintance with the arts 
and sciences, for which a good foundation was laid in 
his liberal education. 

He was early instructed in the principles of religion ; 
nor did he want very near him some eminent examples 
for the practice of it, which had a good effect upon him, 
and appeared in his dutifulness to his parents, his con- 
stant attendance on the public worship of God, his zeal 
for the settlement of a gospel minister, and his ambition 
for his honorable support. In short, he promised to be 
a most useful member of society, and a still greater 
blessing to mankind, but alas I a premature death cut 
off our hopes and expectations. 

Several of the letters that passed between Sir William 
and his intimate friends, relating to his sore affliction, 
are worthy of insertion, as showing the deep sympathy 
felt for him, and the Christian spirit with which he bore 
his trials. 



236 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

[To Sir Peter Warren.] 

Kittery, in Neio England, April 26, 1751. 

Honorable and Dear Sir, — As I have written you 
several letters since I left your seat at Westbury, and 
not receiving any of your favors, I shall be very brief. 
I acquainted you in some of those letters that I had 
arrived safely, and found my friends and family well. 
A great mercy that I was preserved abroad, and then 
returned in health. But that mercies and prosperity 
are not always to be our experience, I have lately been 
taught, for on the first day of March, my dear and only 
son, after an illness of nervous fever of ten days, a 
healthy, strong, and promising young man, was taken 
from us by death, — a very great bereavement. May 
God be graciously pleased to sanctify this affliction for 
our eternal good, that we may more and more realize 
the uncertainty of life and of all earthly enjoyments, and 
that we may be more earnest in securing an interest in the 
blessed Lord Jesus Christ, which is the only thing that can 
avail us in a dying hour. I hope you and your lady will 
never meet with so great a bereavement and trial. 

1 have written to Mr. Kilby to send yourself and 
lady a mourning ring, in remembrance of our dear de- 
parted son, which I beg your acceptance of. 

I had thoughts of paying you another visit, but I 
know not what to do. O that God would graciously 
be pleased to enable me to acknowledge him aright in all 
my ways, and then I shall be safe in life or death. 

Wishing you and yours much of his presence, my 
wife joins with me in best respects to yourself and lady, 
and your dear but uncertain comforters. 

I am, much respected and dear Sir, your distressed 
friend, and faithful humble servant, W. P. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 237 

[Sir Peter Warren's reply.] 

My dear Sir, — I have received your favor of the 
26th of April, and am sorry to assure you it is the only 
one I have had from you since I saw you, though you 
say you have wrote me several. I most sincerely con- 
dole with you on the great affliction with which you 
have been visited by the hand of Providence in the 
death of your only son ; but if I know you rightly, I 
think you have fortitude and resignation sufficient to 
bear it as becomes a good man, and to submit to that 
great Power whose will it was to call him from this vain 
world, and to bereave you of so great an earthly com- 
fort as we look upon our children to be. But why 
should I, who have felt the same distress myself, say so 
much to renew your grief? My wife joins with me in 
wishing you to bear with patience this trial, and in 
thanking you for the memento of rings sent to us both. • 
Our portraits should have been with you ere now, 
could we have got the painter to finish them. Mine is 
pretty forward, and I hope you will have it this fall, and 
the other as soon as possible.* 

I came here a few days ago to drink the waters, by 
the advice of my physician, for the scurvy, and I think 
I derive benefit from them. 

I believe you and I have been together more than 
once at my neighbor Mr. Naith's. His son is appointed 
consul at Madeira, is a man of business, and his father 
has prevailed on me to recommend him to you and 
your friends, for commission business, which I take the 
liberty to do most heartily. 

Smybert has not sent me your and Captain Spry's 

* These portraits are in the Atheneum, Portsmouth, N. H. 



238 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

portraits, which I admire [wonder at]. Sir Harry 
Frankland had commissions from me to get them sent 
to me. 

My dear Sir William, your most faithful obedient 
servant, P. Warren. 

[Extract from Mr. C. Kilby's letter,] 

October 7. 1751. 

I executed your commission to Sir Peter and Lady 
Warren, but did not see it necessary to go any further 
than to accept of that melancholy token of your regard 
to Mrs. Kilby and myself, at the expense of four guineas 
in the whole. But, as it is not unusual here on such 
occasions, Mrs. Kilby has, at her own expense, added 
some sparks of diamonds to some other mournful orna- 
ments to the ring, which she intends to wear, the whole 
of which is finished, and we recommended it to the 
maker to wait on Lady Warren, in order to give her an 
opportunity to express her regard for the present, which 
it is probable she may have already done. I have been 
silent under a deep feeling of sympathy, nor do I now 
find myself at present able to discharge the duties of a 
relation and friend with propriety. Our religion teaches 
us that it is our confidence in God only that can sup- 
port us. 

Sir William writes to Colonel John Gorham, one of 
his colonels at the siege of Louisburg : — 

Kittery, April 6, 1751. 

I am favored with yours of the 12th of last month. 
It would have given me pleasure to have seen you at 
Boston, or at Halifax, in my passage from England. My 
design was, if we had sailed near, to have gone in and 
paid his Excellency Governor Cornwallis and friends a 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 239 

visit, though I have no acquaintance with that worthy 
gentleman. I once did myself the pleasure of writing 
to him, but never was favored with a line in return. 
Sure I am that I should be glad to do him any service. 
Please to present my compliments to him and to my 
friend Greene and lady, and all inquiring friends. 

I met with a very handsome reception in Great 
Britain. I think they have at home a great value for 
this country, and I hope w^e shall always so behave as 
to deserve it. 

What you have heard of an unwillingness in this 
government to encourage the settlement of Nova 
Scotia must be a great mistake, for certainly every re- 
flecting man must be sensible that not only the four 
New England governments, but the whole English 
America, depends, under God, on the well settling and 
fortifying of Nova Scotia. 

Governor Cornwallis's letter to our lieutenant-governor, 
asking for assistance, was referred to a committee of 
both houses, of which I was chairman. Our report 
thereon was, that we had a large frontier, and were 
likely to be invaded in an Indian war, and that, con- 
sidering how many of our men had been impressed on 
board the king's ships, and not returned, and how many 
were lost at Louisburg and Minas, we did not consider 
it convenient, or even safe at that time, to spare men 
out of this province ; and if we did, the men could not 
be raised and sent down soon enough to answer the 
end proposed by his Excellency; and that the other 
governments who had no frontiers, and had not lost so 
many men as we had, in the late war, and could spare 
men without any hazard of being attacked, should be 
applied to. I have no reason to doubt but if the several 
other governments on this continent would join to 



^^ 



240 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

send men to remove those vexatious neighbors, (mean- 
ing the French Neutrals,) this province would very 
heartily concur with them. Certainly I for one would 
do all in my power to promote such a design. 

I join with you in the opinion that our Americans, 
who are used to the woods, are the best men to pursue 
the Indians, and that it would have been better to have 
continued the two American regiments. 

I have recommended in our mother country the good 
services of Colonel Gorham and others that behaved 
well against Louisburg. 

Your obedient humble servant, W. Pepperrell. 

Colonel Gorham replies, July 5, 1751, from Halifax : — 

I did your message to our governor, who since tells 
me he has wrote your honor. 

I will take the freedom to remind your honor how I 
came to be in that glorious expedition against Louis- 
burg. 

I was sent up to recruit from Annapolis Royal, by Gov- 
ernor Mascarene, as that fort was then in great danger 
of falling into the hands of the enemy, and this expe- 
dition being then in embryo, I was importuned by 
Governor Shirley, and desired by your honor and many 
more of the council, to raise a number of men, and 
purchase whaleboats, and proceed in the expedition, as 
I did, upon condition of my having the liberty of going 
home with your honor's packet in my own sloop, as 
soon as the English flag should be hoisted at Louis- 
burg. But I was disappointed in this, and received no 
commission in his royal regiment. My father died, and 
most of his regiment at Louisburg. But I thank you 
for giving me the commission of colonel of my father's 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 241 

regiment; and I now solicit a letter of recommendation 
abroad, and assistance to carry through my memorial 
to the Legislature of Massachusetts. 

These favors were granted ; and in respect to the 
promise of sending him bearer of despatches announcing 
the conquest, it should be remembered that it was 
made before Warren joined the expedition, who had an 
equal voice with Pepperrell in selecting a bearer, and 
would prefer a regularly commissioned officer of high 
rank in the navy, as being more respectful to the king. 

Secretary Willard writes, requesting him to attend as 
a commissioner, being one of the council, to treat with 
the Indians. He answers from Kittery, July 19, 1751 : — 

Sir, — Your favor of the 13th and 16th instant, T 
received with a copy of Captain Lithgow's letter to the 
honorable lieutenant-governor. I should be glad if the 
gentlemen in the lower part of this province, when they 
apprehend danger from the Indians, were directed to 
communicate to the upper part, Kittery, York, and 
Wells, which are greatly exposed. 

I observe by his honor the lieutenant-governor's and 
your letter, that you are desirous of my attendance at 
the proposed treaty at St. George's, and that you think 
I may be of service. O, Sir, the severe stroke which I 
have met with in the death of my. dear and only son. 
has brought me very low, so that I cannot think at 
present I am fit for any business. Besides, there are a. 
number in the council that have not taken their 
turns, and I have attended, I think, all the treaties but 
the last one with the eastern Indians, for upwards of 
thirty years past. I must therefore desire you to ex- 
cuse me. 

21 



242 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

With sincere respects, I am, Sir, your most obedient 
servant, W. P. 



From the Reverend Henry Flynt, tutor in Harvard 
College, he received a letter of condolence, to which he 
replies : — 

Klttery, Juhj 23, 1751. 

Reverend and dear Sir, — Your kind and sympa- 
thizing letter of the 14th April last, I received. I am 
sure it is from no want of respect that I have so long 
delayed acknowledging the receipt of it, but the heavy 
blow received by the death of my dear and only son, 
a promising, healthy young man, has taken me off from 
doing my duty, and I hope you will therefore pardon 
my seeming neglect. I am greatly obliged to you for 
your good advice and instruction in said letter. I hope 
the Almighty will be graciously pleased to enable me 
to lay it up in my heart, and practise it in my life all my 
days. May this death be sanctified to us all ; and may 
poor sinking Mrs. Pepperrell, my very dear consort, be 
supported under this heavy bereavement, who joins 
with me in our best respects, desiring your prayers. 

I am, dear Sir, your faithful and obliged humble 
servant, W. P. 

[From Governor Wentworth.] 

May 9, 1751. 

Dear Sir, — I have flattered myself with being able 
to pay you a visit for some time past, but my feet are 
so bad that I am afraid it will be longer than I ex- 
pected. Please to excuse my hurry and manner of 
writing, being under great anxiety for my son Foster, 
whose life I almost despair of. I hope I shall be pre- 
pared for the pleasure of the Almighty, let what will 
happen. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 243 

I heartily condole with you and your lady for your 
unspeakable loss. But the will of God must be done, 
and we as Christians ought (let our lot be ever so hard) 
to pay all due submission thereunto. 

I am, with great truth, Sir, your most obedient and 
humble servant, B. Wentworth. 

The governor's son died in a few days after the above 
date, and Sir William sends the following reply : — 

Kittery, June 10, 1751. 

Dear Sir, — I can sincerely and sensibly sympathize 
with your Excellency and your sorrowful lady in the 
loss of your dear son. What shall we say to these 
things? God is wise and holy and just and good in 
all his ways and works. Why should a living man 
complain for the punishment of his sins ? Let us search 
and try our ways, and turn unto the Lord. May our 
profiting appear unto all. 

I ask your acceptance of a piece of fine venison out 
of my own inclosure. 

I am. Sir, your Excellency's, etc. W. P. 

Little did Lady Warren expect, when she sent the 
kind message by her husband to Sir William, that it 
would so soon fall to her lot to receive a message of 
condolence from him in return. In less than a year 
after, he writes her : — 

Kittert/, New Engkind, November 18, 1752. 

My Lady, — I do heartily sympathize with you in 
your sorrows for the death of my honored and dear 
friend, your late beloved husband. New England's 
friend. Your Ladyship, I trust, and your dear father- 



244 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

less children, are not forgotten in the prayers of the 
good people of this land. Many and exceedingly 
precious are the promises made to the widow and the 
fatherless, recorded in the Scriptures of truth. They 
were written, you know, for our instruction and conso- 
lation. Had it not been for Divine recruits from them, 
poor Lady Pepperrell and I should have perished in our 
late sore affliction and bereavement. But blessed is the 
man, the woman, whom the Lord chasteneth, therefore 
let us not despise nor faint under his chastenings. O 
may our profiting appear unto all ! May we study and 
find out wherefore the Lord contendeth with us, and if 
we have done iniquity (as there is not a just man upon 
earth that doeth good and sinneth not), may we do so 
no more. Is any afflicted, let him pray. May we pray 
always, and remember each other in our daily addresses 
to the Throne of Grace, social and solitary. And may 
we thus hold a sweet. Christian communion with each 
other in the house of our pilgrimage, till a few sorrow- 
ful days are roUed away, and then may we have a 
happy and joyful meeting with our dear departed 
friends in the presence of our holy, and blessed, and 
glorious Redeemer! I wish the best of blessings to 
your Ladyship and your dear children, and I should be 
glad to do them any service, if it lay in my power. 

I am, dear Lady, your Ladyship's most faithful and 
most obedient humble servant, 

William Pepperrell. 

On the bottom of the above to Lady Warren, the 
following was written and erased : — 

" I have ventured to inclose, as a rarity, being an 
American production, a hymn composed by a lady a 
little before the death of her only son, who died last 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 245 

March was twelvemonth. Your Ladyship's known 
candor will excuse this freedom." 

Andrew Pepperrell died in March, 1751 ; and un- 
doubtedly the hymn was by Lady Pepperrell ; probably 
Sir William concluded not to send it, and suppressed 
the postscript. 

Among the distinguished clergymen who visited Sir 
William to administer religious consolation, was the 
renowned Dr. Jonathan Edwards, a missionary at the 
time among the Stockbridge Indians. Mr. Edwards 
was many years settled at Northampton as colleague, 
and afterwards as successor of Rev. Dr. Stoddart. Hav- 
ing introduced some innovations into the established 
terms of church membership offensive to a majority of 
the church and parish, he was regularly dismissed, and 
was thence invited to the pastoral care of a society in 
Stockbridge, and about the same time received propo- 
sals from the commissioners at Boston, of The Society in 
London for p^'opagating- the Gospel in Neiv England, to 
become the missionary of the Housatonnucs or Stock- 
bridge Indians. Distinguished individuals in London 
felt an interest in this tribe, among whom Avas Joshua 
Paine, Esquire, who addressed a letter to Sir William, 
requesting information respecting some suitable plan 
for a school for Indian girls at that place. The secre- 
tary of the Boston commissioners sent Dr. Edwards an 
extract from Mr. Paine's letter, with a request that he 
would write to Sir William on the subject. He accord- 
ingly gave his views at length in an able and compre- 
hensive survey of the whole matter, dated in November 
after his visit of condolence in April.* Pepperrell, at 
the time of the visit, expressed a deep interest in the- 

* See Works of President Edwards, Vol. I. p. 474. 
21* 



246 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Indian mission, and soon after, wrote to persons of 
influence in London, and, among others, to his old 
companion Admiral Warren, saying : " I have this day 
been favored with a visit from Rev. Jonathan Edwards, 
a worthy minister of the Gospel, who has, the last 
winter, been preaching to some of the six nations, the 
Housatonnucs of Stockbridge. He tells me he has 
great encouragement, that many of them incline to 
embrace the Protestant religion. This seems to be a 
token for good, and will not only tend to make them 
our fast friends, and keep them from going over to the 
French, but may be a means of building up the king- 
dom of our glorious Redeemer, which is far more im- 
portant." Warren, who had first intended to appropri- 
ate the seven hundred pounds received as commissions 
on the disbursements allowed to New England for the 
Louisburg expedition, to the support of a Protestant 
school in Ireland, and subsequently changed his purpose 
to that of building a town-hall in Cambridge, was now 
induced by Pepperrell's letter to appropriate it to the 
object therein suggested, of educating the Indians. In 
reply to said letter, Warren says : " I am extremely 
pleased at the mention you make of bringing the 
Indians over to Christianity, and I have wrote to Secre- 
tary Willard that I should be very glad if the seven 
hundred pounds, which I ever intended for public use 
might be well improved for that great end, instead of 
building any town-hall at Cambridge. I am in hopes 
the letters I have wrote will divert them from that in- 
tention, and lead them to the other." Thus the flourish- 
ing schools and missionary success that ensued at 
Stockbridge were greatly promoted by the contribution 
of Warren, through the suggestion of Pepperrell, made 
at the request of Rev. Dr. Edwards. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 247 

In the package containing Mr. Edwards's letter to Sir 
William, was the following letter to Lady Pepperrell, 
written on occasion of her deep affliction, which has 
been much admired as a happy specimen of Christian 
sympathy and condolence. The entire letter is too long 
for insertion. 

My Lady, — When I was at your house in Kittery, 
the last spring, among other instances of your kind and 
condescend hig treatment to me, was this, that, when I 
had some conversation with Sir William concerning 
Stockbridge and the Indians, and he generously offered 
me any assistance in the business of my mission here, 
which his acquaintance and correspondence in London 
enabled him to afford me, and proposed my writing to 
hhu on our affairs ; you were also pleased to invite me 
to write you at the same time. If I should neglect to 
do as you then proposed, I should fail not only of dis- 
charging my duty, but of doing myself gi-eat honor. 
But as I am well assured, even from the small acquaint- 
ance I had with you, that a letter of mere compliments 
would not be agreeable to a lady of your disposition 
and feelings, especially under your present melancholy 
circumstances ; so the writing of such a letter is very 
far from my intention or inclination. 

When I saw the evidences of your deep sorrow, 
under the awful frowns of heaven in the death of your 
only son, it made an impression on my mind not easily 
forgotten ; and when you spoke of my writing to you, 
I soon determined what should be the subject of my 
letter. It was that which appeared to me to be the 
most proper subject of contemplation, for one in your 
circumstances ; that, which I thought, above all others. 



248 LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

would furnish you a proper and sufficient source of con- 
solation, under your heavy affliction ; and this was the 
Lord Jesus Christ : — particularly the amiableness of 
his character, which renders him worthy that we should 
love him, and take him for our only portion, our rest, 
hope, and joy; and his great and unparalleled love 
toward us. And I have been of the same mind ever 
since ; being determined, if God favored me with an 
opportunity to write to your Ladyship, that those 
things should be the subject of my letter. For what 
other subject is so well calculated to prove a balm to 
the wounded spirit. [Passing over three or four pages 
to the concluding part of this letter, which glows 
throughout with Christian sentiment and love, we 
arrive at the following conclusion, most gracefully ex- 
pressed.] 

We see, then, dear Madam, how rich and how ade- 
quate is the provision which God has made for our con- 
solation in all our afflictions, in giving us a Redeemer 
of such glory, and such love ; especially when it is con- 
sidered what were the ends of this great manifestation 
of beauty and love, in his death. He suffered that we 
might be delivered. His soul was exceeding sorrowful 
even unto death, to take away the sting of sorrow, and 
to impart everlasting consolation. He was oppressed 
and afflicted, that we might be supported. He was 
overwhelmed in the darkness of death that we might 
have the light of life. He was cast into the furnace of 
God's wrath, that we might drink of the rivers of 
pleasure. His soul was overwhelmed with sorrow that 
our hearts might be overwhelmed with a flood of eter- 
nal joy. 

We may also well remember in what circumstances 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 249 

our Redeemer now is. He was dead, but he is alive, and 
he lives forevermore. Death may deprive us of our 
friends here, but it cannot deprive us of this our best 
friend. We have this best of friends, this mighty 
Redeemer, to go to, in all our afflictions ; and he is not 
one who cannot be touched with the feeling of our in- 
firmities. He has suffered far greater sorrows than we 
have ever suffered; and if we are actually united to 
him, the union can never be broken, but will continue 
when we die and when heaven and earth are dissolved. 
Therefore, in this we may be confident, though the earth 
be removed, in him we shall triumph with everlast- 
ing joy. Now, when storms and tempests arise, we 
may resort to him, who is a hiding-place from the 
storm, and a covert from the tempest. When we thirst 
we may come to him, who is as rivers of water in a dry 

place Christ said to his disciples, " In the 

world ye shall have tribulation ; but in me ye shall have 
peace." If we are united to him we shall be like a tree 
planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out its roots 
by the river, that shall not see when heat cometh, but 
its leaf shall ever be green, and it shall not be careful 
in the year of drought, neither shall it cease from yield- 
ing fruit. He will now be our light in darkness ; our 
morning star, shining as the sure harbinger of approach- 
ing day. In a little time he will arise on our souls, as 
the sun in his glory, and our sun shall no more go 
down, and there shall be no interposing cloud, no veil 
on his face or on our hearts ; but the Lord shall be our 
everlasting light, and our Redeemer our glory. 

That this glorious Redeemer would manifest his 
glory and love to your mind, and apply what little I 
have said on this subject to your consolation, in all your 
afflictions, and abundantly reward your kindness and 



250 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

generosity to me, while I was at Kittery ; is the fervent 
prayer, Madam, of your Ladyship's most obliged and 
affectionate friend and humble servant, 

Jonathan Edwards. 

It may interest some readers to know more of the 
history of the Stockbridge mission and school, and of 
Mr. Edwards's labors. The Rev. Dr. Stephen Williams, 
son of Rev. John Williams, of Deerfield, and in boyhood 
an Indian captive with his father, was educated for the 
ministry, and was a chaplain in high favor with Pep- 
perrell at Louisburg. He was subsequently chaplain 
with Colonel Ephraim Williams, when he fell near 
Lake George. This Reverend Stephen Williams was 
among the early and active promoters of the Indian 
mission at Stockbridge, and assisted at the ordination 
of Rev. John Sargeant, the first missionary sent there. 
Mr. Sargeant married a sister of Colonel Ephraim, 
and her husband dying, she married for her second hus- 
band. Brigadier Dwight. The wealth and talents of 
the Williamses already gave them commanding influ- 
ence in the western part of Massachusetts, which was 
increased by family alliances, and particularly by this 
with Brigadier Dwight. The father of Colonel Ephraim 
and of Mrs. Dwight was the leader of four families 
selected and sent by the legislature to reside at Stock- 
bridge, as companions and assistants with the mission- 
ary, and he was surveyor and one of the trustees, and 
to some extent steward of the funds sent from London 
and from Boston. 

The Williams family had been strenuous opponents 
of Mr. Edwards at Northampton, and active in effecting 
his dismission, and were opposed to his settlement at 
Stockbridge. Mr. Wood bridge, an Indian teacher at 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 251 

Stockbridge, and one of the four sent by the province, 
was in favor with Mr. Edwards, and so was Mr. Haw- 
ley, his assistant. Mr. Ephraim Williams, senior, wished 
to introduce two of his kinsmen into the place of these 
teachers, and Mrs. Sargeant, his daughter, was already 
employed during her widowhood as teacher of the Indian 
females. Such was the relation in which individuals 
stood to each other. Mr. Edwards, probably remem- 
bering the opposition of the Williamses at Northampton, 
disliked and opposed the further increase of their power, 
by substituting their kinsmen for Woodbridge and Haw- 
ley, as teachers, and spoke of Mrs. Sargeant, now Mrs. 
Dwight, as too much engrossed with domestic cares to 
fulfil her duties as a teacher of the Indian females. Thus 
two parties existed, whose dissensions threatened to 
injure the whole Indian mission. The Williamses en- 
deavored to displace Mr. Edwards, by drawing up a 
report to the legislature, representing him as obstinate 
and self-willed, knowing that if they succeeded in re- 
moving him,the tutors Woodbridge and Hawley might 
easily be displaced, and that Mrs. Dwight would remain 
undisturbed in the female department, and Mr. Wil- 
liams remain steward and controller of the donations of 
Hollis, Paine, and Warren, and of legislative appropri- 
ations. 

Both parties made interest with Pepperrell, Oliver, 
and Secretary Willard, and other prominent men. Ed- 
wards, in a long epistle, dated January 30, 1753, to Sir 
William, defended his own conduct against the com- 
plaints of his opponents, and solicited his influence 
with the corporation in London. But an officious 
friend of Dwight and Williams intimated to Edwards's 
friends that they had secured Sir William's interest 
with the corporation on their side, for the removal of 



252 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Mr. Edwards. On hearing which, Secretary Willard 
addressed a letter to Pepperrell : — 

Boston, February 24, 1753. 

Honored and dear Sir, — The occasion of giving 
you this trouble, is a rumor we have that you have 
promised Brigadier Dwight that you would use all your 
interest with your friends in England, that Mr. Edwards 
should be discharged from his trust as missionary 
among the Indians. Indeed, I am fully persuaded, 
from the knowledge I have of your candid and generous 
temper, and the love you have for good men, that there 
is not the least ground for this report. 

The commissioners for Indian affairs, after a full and 
impartial inquiry into the dissensions lately arisen at 
Stock bridge, are well satisfied as to the general good 
conduct of Mr. Edwards, and apprehend he has been 
very faithful in the discharge of that important trust ; 
that his heart is sincerely engaged therein ; that he has 
acquii-ed the general affections of the Indians, and influ- 
ence over them, which he constantly employs for the 
best purposes, and the success thereof will doubtless 
be more evident, were it not for the unwearied oppo- 
sition of some people from personal prejudices. I know 
of but one colorable pretence they have for disqualify- 
ing Mr. Edwards for this mission, and that is his want 
of the Indian language, and unsuitable age for learning 
it. But if this is a sufficient reason against him now, 
it was doubtless so when Brigadier Dwight was so 
eager, before his alliance with the Williams family, to 
have Mr. Edwards put into this employment. Besides, 
I apprehend Mr. Edwards's other excellent accomplish- 
ments for this work, will more than make amends for 
that defect. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 253 

Sir William replies : — 

Kittery, March 6, 1753. 

Honored Sir, — Your favor of the 24th of last 
month, I received by Colonel Dwight, and at the same 
time received a letter from the Rev. Mr. Edwards. It is 
strange to hear what liberty some people will give 
themselves. I never was at court to hear any of the 
arguments relating to the difference between Brigadier 
Dwight and the Rev. Mr. Edwards, and am altogether 
a stranger to it; and how I should expose myself, by 
writing on an affair that I was a stranger to. You 
have been pleased to say you have known me when I 
was very young, and been acquainted with me ever 
since, and if you have seen such imprudent and vile 
actions by me, I must say you have not acted like a 
faithful friend, in withholding reproof. I can assure 
you that I never told any person that I would ever 
write for or against Mr. Edwards, and that I never 
thought of writing a syllable against him in my life. 

Mr. Edwards continued to retain his place at Stock- 
bridge four or five years, when he was invited to the 
presidency of Princeton College, as successor to his son- 
in-law. Rev. Aaron Burr; but he died in the course of 
the first year, of smallpox. 

Soon after Dr. Edwards's removal from Stockbridge, 
Colonel Ephraim Williams writes to Pepperrell, asking 
aid and influence with his correspondents in London of 
the missionary board, to prevent the removal of his 
sister Mrs. Dwight, from the office of teacher of Indian 
girls, and the letter was carried and presented by her 
husband the brigadier. Doubtless the application suc- 
ceeded, as no complaint had been made except her 

22 



254 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

family cares, and it appears that she was not displaced. 
The number of Indian families at the time in Stock- 
bridge, was fifty -three, and of Indians two hundred and 
eighteen, of whom one hundred and twenty-nine had 
been baptized, and forty-two were communicants. 

Colonel Israel Williams, of Hatfield, one of the most 
distinguished men in that region, was a graduate of 
Harvard, j udge and councillor, and a particular friend 
and correspondent of Sir William. The two following 
letters, relating to their afflictions, contain such appro- 
priate sentiments of Christian resignation, as to render 
them worthy of preservation, for the perusal of such as 
may be called to drink of the cup of similar bitter in- 
gredients. Colonel William's son was a recent graduate 
of Harvard, of rare promise, whose death was greatly 
lamented by a wide circle of friends and acquaintances. 
Sir William's reply mentions a new occasion of grief, 
in the death of his beloved grandson. 

Hatfield, April 3, 1752. 

Sir William, — I received your favor ; should gladly 

wait on you at Boston, at the time you propose, would 

my circumstances allow : but. Sir, I have neither 

strength nor heart. Since I wrote you in April last, it 

has pleased God to visit my house in an awful manner, 

myself and several others with long and distressing 

sickness, and to remove several by death ; the last was 

my first-born and oldest son. As you have been called 

before me to tread the thorny way, so you know well 

how to pity me and sympathize with me under my 

sorrow. I feel what you have felt, and can heartily 

mourn with and for you. It is no small comfort, that 

we are not called to mourn without hope, and that we 

have reason to believe that God took hold of our chil- 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 255 

dren's heart by his grace, and that they are now adoring 
him above, with other kindred spirits there. But when 
we view them commencing manhood, and promising to 
repay our labors, pains, sorrows, vows, and wishes, in a 
virtuous and useful life, and then taken from us, and all 
our hopes are dashed, and confined to a dark and narrow 
grave, it pierces a fond parent's heart in a manner you 
know better than I can express. However, it is the will 
of the glorious Jehovah ; he has done right, and it be- 
comes us to acquiesce in his sovereignty, wisdom, and 
righteousness. Our heavenly Father sees we have need 
of these things, to recover our wandering hearts, and to 
bring us to live upon him, as our only portion and hap- 
piness. May the rod be in the hand of love, and so 
improved by us as not to render such strokes necessary 
to reduce us. May these afflictions work for us a far 
more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. 

Israel Williams. 

[Answer.] 

Kittery, June 5, 1752. 

Colonel Israel Williams : — 

Sir, — Your favor of the 3d of April, I should have 
acknowledged the receipt of before, but was in hopes 
of seeing you at the General Court at Concord. But 
the Grand Orderer of all things has prevented me. 
About six days since, I had a grandson about three years 
old, named for my dear deceased son, a promising child, 
removed from us by death. This has brought afresh 
our late great loss in our only son ; not lost, I trust, but 
gone before to the mansions above, there adoring free, 
sovereign grace, where there will be no more sin nor 
sorrow. I do sincerely sympathize with you in your 
bereavement, as I am made sensible what your soul 



256 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

feels. O that these afflictions may be sanctified to our 
eternal good, and that they may teach us so to number 
our days that we may apply our hearts more and more 
to true spiritual wisdom ! We desire to be thankful 
that we are not of them who sorrow without hope. 
These are shocking trials to poor human nature. A pa- 
rent never buries a child, when grown in years. 

W. P. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 257 



CHAPTER XIT. 

Sir William owned real estate in nearly every town 
on the seaboard, from Hampton to Portland, and also 
in the towns bordering on the Pascataqua River. During 
the two or three years after his return from England, 
his attention was occupied in looking after these estates, 
and in closing his mercantile accounts. The historian 
of Saco remarks, that the baronet was often in that 
town, and his appearance is described by several aged 
persons. " He passed much time at the house of Rev. 
Mr. Morrill, and always attended meeting when here on 
Sunday. His dress was usually in the expensive &tyle 
of those days, of scarlet cloth trimmed with gold lace, 
and a large powdered wig. When strangers were 
present at meeting, it was common to solicit a con- 
tribution, the avails of which were the perquisites of the 
minister. Pepperrell would sometimes, it is said, throw 
a guinea into the box, in token of friendship and regard 
for the worthy pastor."* 

The first bridge over any part of Saco River was built 
with the proceeds of a lottery granted by the General 
Court, 1757, on the petition of Sir William Pepperrell 

* The town of Biddeford included the town of Saco until 1762, 
when it was separated, and all on the east side of the river, including 
Cutts' island, was incorporated into a separate town, named Pepper- 
rellboro', in honor of Sir William ; and it retained this name until 
1805, when the old and more convenient designation, Saco, was, on 
petition of the inhabitants, substituted by an act of the legislature. 

22* 



258 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

and others, and Sir William was placed at the head of 
commissioners who were to raise and superintend the 
drawing of this lottery. This bridge crossed the branch 
of the river on the east side of the island, above the 
present one. 

Residing in Maine, near the Indian tribes with whom 
treaties had existed, of one kind and another, for nearly 
a century, which were renewed from time to time, and 
especially after any Indian war. Sir William had been 
employed as commissioner in forming most of these 
treaties for the last thirty years, and generally as presi- 
dent of the board. An account of their proceedings on 
one of these occasions was published in a pamphlet, 
from which the following abstract is made, illustrating 
the relative position and condition of that nearly extinct 
race a century ago, and the manner of holding Indian 
councils. 

The conference was held at St. George's, between 
Kennebec and Penobscot Rivers, September 20, 1753, 
between commissioners appointed by Governor Shirley, 
namely. Sir William Pepperrell, Baronet ; Jacob Wen- 
dell ; Thomas Hubbard ; John Winslow, Esquire ; and 
Mr. James Bowdoin, and the Penobscot chiefs. 

The commissioners being seated at a large table near 
the Fort, attended by a number of gentlemen and others 
as spectators, the chiefs and others of the Penobscot 
tribe of Indians were seated over against them. After 
the usual salutations had passed, an interpreter and 
secretary were sworn, and Sir William Pepperrell, in 
the name of the commissioners, spoke to the Indians as 
follows : — 

" Friends and Brothers, — Governor Shirley has done 
us the honor of a commission, and given us full power 
to act in behalf of the government. Through the favor 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 259 

of Divine Providence we have been preserved in our 
voyage hither, and are glad of this opportunity of see- 
ing so great a number of you. 

" The last treaty with you has been kept sacred and 
inviolate on our part; and in some respects we have 
exceeded our engagements, particularly as to your trade 
with us, .... and we doubt not that you have 
before this, reaped the happy consequences of it. 

" We rejoice in the happy effects of the peace and 
friendship subsisting between us. That we may open 
our minds freely to each other, we shall now proceed to 
a conference with you, in which we have nothing new 
to offer, but to renew and confirm our former treaty, the 
same that was formerly agreed upon between you and 
Governor Dummer, that so the chain of friendship sub- 
sisting between us may become brighter and brighter. 
To this end we are ready to receive any proposals that 
you have to offer." 

Ahenquit^ in the name of the rest of the Penobscot 
tribe, arose and spoke as follows : — 

" Brethren, — We are well pleased to see you here, 
and that God has preserved you in your voyage, and 
brought you in safety. 

" We like what Governor Dummer and Governor 
Shirley did, and we will stand to what our sachems 
then did. No man shall prevent the happy union sub- 
sisting between us; the several treaties now existing 
between us we are ready to ratify." 

Several talks were held on the subject of furs, trade, 
and prices ; the deceptions practised on them by their 
Catholic priest ; and their failure to restore captives, 
according to the promise made by them and the Nor- 
ridgewalks the preceding year, when they engaged to 
go after and redeem them in the spring. Explanations 



260 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

were offered. The Indians then said they were ready 
to confirm all the treaties in order to brighten the chain, 
and wished that peace might continue forever. They 
acknowledged the deceptions practised on them by their 
Catholic priest. 

More than thirty of the chiefs and others of the 
Penobscot tribes then ratified and signed the treaty of 
Falmouth, of 1749. After which, the commissioners 
delivered to the Indians the presents sent by the govern- 
ment, for which they expressed great thankfulness, and 
desired liberty that their young men might show their 
good liking of what had been now done, by having a 
dance in the presence of the commissioners. After this 
was finished, the commissioners drank King George's 
health, wishing that the peace now ratified might con- 
tinue as long as the sun and moon shall endure. 

The commissioners then embarked in the sloop, in 
order to proceed to Fort Richmond (Waterville) to 
meet the Norridgewalk tribe of Indians ; and in an 
hour after their arrival there, Quarnet, a Norridgewalk 
Indian, came down the river in a boat to wait on them. 
The next day five canoes, with the chiefs of the Nor- 
ridgewalk tribe, arrived. Being assembled as before, 
without the fort. Sir William Pepperrell, in the name 
of the commissioners, addressed them as follows : — 

" Friends and Brothers, — We appear here by the 
order and commission of Governor Shirley, and are 
fully authorized to treat with you." 

After cautioning them against the treachery of Pierre 
Gannon, their Catholic priest, he says : " If we look 
into the last treaty, we shall find that three articles 
composed it, namely, trade, our captives, and our 
lands. As for trade, the governor has given orders to 
the truck-masters to supply you at a lower price than 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 261 

the French, which we are abundantly able and disposed 
to do. 

" As to our friends in captivity, we must remind you 
of your solemn engagement to return them by the last 
spring at furthest; yet they still remain in the hands of 
the French. This conduct of yours is base and unjust, 
arid as such deserves the highest resentment ; and, there- 
fore, after all your promises, we must demand of you 
the reason why they are not returned; and unless satis- 
factorily accounted for, we must plainly tell you that 
you have not fulfilled your engagements, and that 
unless restored forthwith we must look upon it as a 
violation of the treaty made and ratified last year. 

" We shall, in the course of this conference, offer you 
such evidence of our claim to these lands as shall con- 
vince you that we have done you no injustice." 

To this the Indians, in the afternoon, answered very 
briefly, telling them not to mind the lying Jesuit ; "we 
want peace as much as the Penobscot Indians do." 

A long parley was then held, in which the Indians 
begged that the English would not encroach further on 
their lands than Fort Richmond (Waterville) where 
they then were. 

" We live," says Quenois, " wholly by this land, and 
live but poorly ; the Penobscots hunt on one side of us, 
and the Canada Indians on the other side ; therefore 
do not turn us ofi" this land. We are willing you 
should enjoy all the lands from Richmond downwards 
to the sea." 

In respect to the captives, the excuse offered by 
Quenois for not bringing them in was, that he broke 
his arm, and was unable to paddle a canoe to Canada 
for them. 

Commissioners. — "When the English promise, they 



262 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

religiously perform ; they promised last year that j^our 
complaints should be redressed, respecting the English 
hunting on your ground, and taking your game ; imme- 
diately upon the great court's sitting after their return, 
a law was made to prevent it." 

Ansiver. — "We made a promise to fetch the cap- 
tives. We are going upon our hunting now ; but in 
the spring we will go to Canada and talk with the 
French governor, and do what we can to bring them." 

Friday afternoon. The title of the English to the 
lands on the Kennebec was discussed. The Indian 
deeds were exhibited, signed by ancient Sagamores, 
many of whose names the Indians remembered. This 
embraced all the lands deeded by the Indians to the 
English, and all on which they had settled. 

Saturday morning, September 29. Pepperrell. — " We 
are glad to see you this morning, and hope you are all 
well. We told you yesterday that all the lands on both 
sides the Kennebec River, as high up as Wasserunsick, 
belonged to the English. Your forefathers sold them 
to the English, who settled them at Cushnoc (Canaan) 
and Tecounet, where are now to be seen the ruins of 
English houses. You have since renewed the treaty by 
which they were ceded, several times." 

The Indians, in reply, stated that it was agreed for- 
merly that they should go no further than Richmond, 
where they now are, and they hoped they would not 
settle further up the river. " The Indians hunt on both 
sides of us." " We get our living on these lands, and 
if the English should settle on them, it would drive 
away our game, which has been the case with respect 
to the lands between Richmond and the sea." 

Pepperrell. — " We fairly purchased these lands from 
your forefathers, which you do n't pretend to deny." 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 263 

Indians. — "We don't think these deeds are false; 
but we apprehend you got the Indians drunk, and so 
took the advantage of them, when you bought these 
lands." 

Pepperrell. — " It was not so ; the English settled 
them before your eyes, and nothing was said against 
it." 

hidians. — "We had no religion in that day, and 
used to buy only rum and wampum." 

Pepperrell. — " There was no rum at that time ; the 
whole trade then carried on was in corn, clothing, and 
provisions." 

Indians. — "We know of a man that occasionally 
ti'aded at Teconnet ; he built a tent there." 

Pepperrell. — " Above a hundred years ago, govern- 
ment built a truck-house at Teconnet, at the Indians' 
desire, and there Avas more trade carried on in that 
day, than there is now in all the truck-houses put to- 
gether." 

Indians. — " There was a trade then ; but we know 
of no lands sold at that time. There was not religion 
in that day." 

Pej^perrell. — " We are fully satisfied these lands 
were fairly purchased of the Indians ; we desire you 
will inquire and search into it ; and we doubt not you 
will then be satisfied of the justice of our claim, and 
that we shall live in peace like brethren." 

Qnenois. — " We will inquire of our old men." 

Pepperrell. — " Are you ready to sign the ratification 
of the articles of peace made and concluded at Casco 
Bay in 1749 ? " 

Indians. — " We are ready." 

Qnenois. — • " I would say one word more. Our 
young men are very apt to get drunk : we desire you 



264 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

would give orders to Captain Lithgow not to let any 
one of them have more rum than one quart in two 
days." 

Pepperrell. — " We are well pleased with what you 
say. We are sensible of the mischievous consequences 
of your young men's having too much rum. Captain 
Lithgow is present, and we now give orders to him be- 
fore you, not to let your young men have any more rum 
than you have now desired." 

The conference being ended, the presents ordered 
them by the government were delivered, King George's 
health was drunk, and the commissioners took leave. 

The peace which had subsisted between Great 
Britain and France, since 1748, was but a truce for 
digesting and matm'ing an extensive plan of hostile 
operations between Lake Erie and the valley of the 
Ohio. M. DuQuesne, governor of Canada, received 
instructions to take possession of that region of terri- 
tory for the crown of France, and to extend a chain of 
forts through it so as to connect Canada with the Mis- 
sissippi. Early in 1753, he ordered a military force, 
under Sieur de St. Pierre, to march to Le Boeuf, 
(Waterford, fourteen miles south of Erie,) and erect a 
fort for security, to be succeeded by others at Venango 
and Pittsburgh. The governor of Virginia claimed the 
territory from the Atlantic westward to an unlimited 
extent, and he considered these forts as an invasion of 
his province. Menaces were reciprocated by both 
parties. Three British fur traders were taken on the 
disputed territory, and carried to a fort then building at 
Erie ; and this was retaliated by the capture of three 
French fur traders. A formal protest against the 
French encroachments was now sent, in the autumn 
of 1753, to Fort DuQuesne (Pittsburgh) by Washing- 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 265 

ton, then only twenty-one years of age, which was 
answered by St. Pierre in a spirited manner, declining 
to suspend his operations. To this subject of conten- 
tion in the West was added the disagreement about the 
boundary line of Nova Scotia, which Shirley and 
Gallisoniere had vainly endeavored to settle. 

Sir William regarded these and other occurrences as 
indications of an approaching war, and bestirred him- 
self to prepare for it. To the captains of his regiment 
he wrote : — 

March 13, 1754. 

It is much feared that the Indians will soon make a 
disturbance. I have no orders from his Excellency, but 
I think this upper part of Maine is worth looking after. 
Should we be alarmed by an enemy's attack, and there 
should be a deficiency in the town's stock of ammuni- 
tion, and the men not provided with arms, the officers 
would be blamed, and ought to be severely punished, 
and a brand set upon them. I desire, and it is my 
order, that you take care and see forthwith, that your 
town is well provided. But I have no thoughts of 
sending you any more orders, as I design to WTite for a 
dismission from the regiment, until which time I hope 
to be able to do my duty. 

Your faithful humble servant, 

W. P. 

The follow^ing letters show that Sir William's appre- 
hensions of war were well founded, and that the irov- 
ernor, in anticipation of it, erected Fort Halifax on the 
Kennebec, and took other measures preparatory for the 
event. 

23 



266 LIFE or SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



[To Honorable Josiah Willard, Secretary of State.] 

Kittery, March 15, 1754. 

Honored Sir, — We have had a report that the 
Indians are like to do mischief, but from whence it 
comes we know not, or whether any credit is to be 
given to it. You are sensible that this upper part of 
Maine lies as much exposed to the French and Indians 
as the lower part, there being but a single line of towns. 
I have ordered the officers to make inquiry into the 
several town stocks of ammunition, and to see that the 
men are well provided with arms, etc., but as I men- 
tioned to you, when at Boston, that there w^ere, in this 
first regiment, upwards of twenty commissioned officers 
that did not take the oath in June last relatina: to receiv- 
ing and paying the other province's bills of credit, some 
through neglect, others in contempt ; the latter are 
unworthy of a commission. As Colonel Moulton and 
myself are growing in years, I have thought when I go 
to Boston to mention to his Excellency that there 
might be two lieutenant-colonels in this regiment and 
two majors, as every part of the frontier is exposed, and 
the distance from Berwick to Scarborough is consider- 
able. Colonel Storer to be one of the colonels and 
Captain John Hill and Major Richard Cutts to be the 
two majors. But as our inferior court sits at York the 
first Tuesday of April, where I have business, I may 
have to be excused from coming to Boston until elec- 
tion. If there be danger of the Indians, I think it is 
best to ffil up the commissions for the offices that are 
vacant as soon as it can be done. I should be glad to 
be excused from the command of the regiment. 
I am. Sir, your most humble servant, 

Wm. Pepperrell. 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 267 

[Letter from Governor Shirley.] 

Boston, June 3, 1754, 

Sir, — Pursuant to the request of the two houses in 
the last assembly, I have raised between four and five 
hundred men for the service of the eastern parts of the 
province, and shall embark with them at this place, 
accompanied with some of his Majesty's council, and 
of the House of Representatives, for Falmouth, where 
I propose to be about the 15th instant, to have an inter- 
view with the Norridgewalk, Penobscot, and Arpegun- 
tocook Indians, whom I have appointed to meet me 
there at that time. I purpose at the same time to send 
a party of these soldiers up the river Kennebec in 
quest of a French settlement, said to be made upon a 
carrying place between that river and the river Chau- 
diere, which falls into the river St. Lawrence nearly 
opposite Quebec, and to cause a new fort to be built 
higher up the river Kennebec than Fort Richmond 
(Waterville), which has grown so ruinous that I shall 
cause it to be dismantled and demolished. 

If it suits your convenience and inclination to meet 

me at Falmouth, I shall be glad of your advice in the 

execution of this service, as one of his Majesty's 

council, and of the pleasure of seeing you there ; being. 

Sir, your obedient humble servant, 

W. Shirley. 

[Sir William's reply,] 

Kitten/, June 6, 1754. 

Sir, — Your Excellency's favor of the 3d instant I 
received. I am in a poor state of health, otherwise 
should have been at Boston at election. I am at 
present incapable of riding, and scarce able to write. 
If my health should be restored, it will give me great 



268 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

pleasure to meet your Excellency at Falmouth at the 
time you mention, and to give my best advice for his 
Majesty's service. 

Your Excellency's most obedient humble servant, 

W. P. 

The governor went at the time appointed, accom- 
panied by many persons of distinction and five hundred 
soldiers, and met the eastern Indians at Falmouth, and 
ratified the former treaties, and returned to Boston in 
September. 

Virginia had adopted prompt measures in return for 
the spirited reply she received by Washington from St. 
Pierre. A regiment was immediately raised and 
marched over the mountains toward Fort DuQuesne, 
but it was met by a superior force, and Washington, 
who commanded, was obliged to capitulate. 
17^/' Ii^telligence of this defeat reached Shirley on 
his return from the eastward, and was soon fol- 
lowed by news of an irruption of six hundred Indians 
into Hoosac, near the north-west corner of Massachu- 
setts. 

An Indian war immediately succeeded, as the follow- 
ing letter from Colonel Moulton to Sir William will 
show. 

YorJc, November 2, 1754. 

Honored Sir, — This day, one John Pearce, a soldier 
at the upper fort on the Kennebec River, came with an 
express for the governor. It was sealed up. He came 
to me to get a horse pressed for him. He told me that 
last Wednesday the Indians had killed a man and 
scalped him at their garrison (which is at Taconit) and 
had taken four men more and carried them off. One 
made his escape. There were six of them hauling logs 



AFTER THE CONQUEST OF LOUISBURG. 269 

to saw for making cabins, when the Indians came 
upon them and served them as above and killed their 
oxen. He further says that eight Indians came into 
the fort in a friendly manner, and told them there were 
some Indians come from Canada, and designed to do 
them some damage, and that they wanted some pro- 
visions for themselves, which they took, and also some 
new blankets, and went off, and it is supposed these are 
the same Indians that did the mischief, as the man who 
made his escape recognized one of them. Dr. March 
ran out, with twenty-two men, after the Indians, and 
they dropped two of their guns and one new blanket 
that they had just taken out of the stores, proving that 
they were the same that were in trading. Great sick- 
ness prevails in the garrison, only twenty out of eighty 
fit for duty. Five men have deserted, five killed and 
taken by Indians, and those that are left are discour- 
aged, and have sent for more men, and unless they 
arrive, they must surrender. 

Your" humble servant, 

Jere Moultox. 



23 



CHAPTER XIII. 

DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 

Thus colonial hostilities were commenced, both east 
and west, which threatened soon to involve both Eu- 
ropean nations in a general conflict. It had been appre- 
hended by the British ministry, who were preparing 
secretly for it ; and the defeat of Washington was the 
signal for open preparation. Before news of this 
arrived. Sir Thomas Robinson wrote to Sir William 
confidentially, that there was a prospect of his being 
soon called into service, and suggesting that he prepare 
himself accordingly. 

Active measures were pursued for disciplining and 
equipping the militia throughout New England. Gov- 
ernor Shirley issued orders to all the commanders to 
muster and inspect their regiments. Sir William writes 
him from Kittery : " Pursuant to your Excel- 
lency's commands I have had the first regiment 
of militia in Maine together, and find them better pro- 
vided with arms and ammunition than I expected ; and 
inasmuch as there has not been a regimental muster 
before for some years past, I have ordered them to 
assemble again on the 15th instant. Nine blank com- 
missions would complete the regiment with officers, 
which I will endeavor to fill for those persons who will 
most honor them." 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 271 

Sir Thomas Robinson writes him as^ain: 

Oct '^G 
"Having informed you in my letter of July 5th, 

that the king had under his royal consideration the 
state of affairs in America ; T am now to acquaint you 
that amongst other measures that are thought proper 
for the defence of his Majesty's just rights and domin- 
ions in these parts, the king has not only been pleased 
to order two regiments of foot, consisting of five hun- 
dred men each, beside officers, commanded by Sir Peter 
Halket and Colonel Dunbar, to repair to Virginia, and 
to be there augmented to the number of seven hundred 
each, but likewise to send orders to Governor Shirley 
and Sir William Pepperrell to raise two regiments, 
whereof they are respectively appointed colonels, of one 
thousand men each ; and also to sign commissions for 
a number of officers to serve in the said two regiments. 

" Whereas there will be wanting a considerable num- 
ber of men to make up the designed compliment of the 
said four regiments, it is his Majesty's pleasure that 
you should be taking the previous steps towards con- 
tributing as far as you can, to have three hundred men 
in readiness to be enlisted, and it is intended that a 
general officer of rank and capacity to be appointed to 
command-in-chief all the king's forces in North America, 
a deputy quartermaster-general, and a commissary of 
the musters, shall set out as soon as conveniently may 
be, in order to prepare every thing for the arrival of the 
forces above-mentioned from Europe, and for- raising 
the others in America. 

" I therefore call upon the quarter-master and com- 
missary to fulfil his Majesty's expectations by furnish- 
ing supplies of every kind for the army, and at the 
expense of the colonies, and to correspond with the 
general and all the governors." 



272 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Lord Halifax writes to Sir William again : — 

October 6, 1754. 

His Majesty having appointed you to be colonel of a 
regiment, consisting of one thousand men, to be raised 
in North America, I have appointed Mr. John Colcraft 
to be your agent, and to do the very many things that 
were immediately necessary. If you will confirm and 
continue him in your agency I will be security for him, 
and can promise you that he will serve you ably and 
agreeably as well as faithfully, and it will be an obhga- 
tion that I shall ever acknowledge. 

Most of the officers will be appointed here and set 
out immediately, but some blank commissions will be 
sent over for the encouragement of those who may best 
assist you in raising your men.* But of these and 
many other particulars you shall soon hear more fully 
from Sir Thomas Robinson, and from. Sir, your most 
obedient and most humble servant, H. Fox. 

Sir William acknowledges the receipt of his commis- 
sion, and adds : " The notice your Lordship was pleased 
to bestow on me when I was in England, laid me under 
very great obhgations. Your request that I would 
accept of Mr. Colcraft as my agent for the regiment is 
cordially complied with, to which end I have sent him 
a power of attorney duly executed. Be assured your 
wishes shall always be a command to me and faithfully 
executed." He, at the same time, writes to Mr. Col- 
craft : — 

*It is obvious from this letter, trusting him again with blank 
commissions to fill, that Sir William, notwithstanding the former false 
imputations of selhng them, retained the unimpaired confidence of 
the king and secretary of war. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 273 

My residence being seventy miles to the north of 
Boston, at a place called Kittery, I met the post on my 
jom-ney hither with your favors of the 8th and 26th of 
October last, in which you inform me that you are 
appointed agent to Governor Shirley's and my regi- 
ments. I have also received a letter from my Lord 
Halifax, Mr. Fox, and from Alderman Baker in your 
behalf, desiring me to confirm you in the office. I 
therefore take this first opportunity to manifest my 
respects for, and compliance with, the commands of 
those gentlemen. Inclosed are the two powers wit- 
nessed by one of his Majesty's council and the secretary 
of this province, which is ^sufficient. I doubt not you 
will be a faithful agent, and will take all proper steps 
to serve the regiment. The more blank commissions I 
have the easier it will be to raise men for the regiment. 

I am very glad to find, by Sir Thomas Robinson's 
letter, that my regiment is to rendezvous at Boston, as 
the men will be such as are mostly raised at the North, 
and the southern climate is very unhealthy and often 
proves fatal to them. Not one of the officers appointed 
for my regiment has arrived here, nor blank commis- 
sions, which I am very sorry for. I shall do all in my 
power to raise men for the regiment, and flatter myself 
we shall soon make a good appearance. There will be 
a considerable charge, but I shall save all I can. I am 
sending to Captain David Wooster, in the colony of 
Connecticut, to raise what men he can there, and to 
draw on you for what money he needs for that service. 
I hope you will have a sufficiency in your hands before 
the bills will reach you, as some of the colonies allow 
twenty per cent, damage for protested bills. Whatever 
money I have by me I shall advance, and be as sparing 



274 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

in drawing as possible, till I hear what you may have 
in your hands. 

I have been very lame for some time past, occasioned 
not by a wound, but by the great colds I got in the 
forty-nine days' siege against Louisburg, and living there 
the first winter after we reduced it, before the houses 
were fitted up that we had shattered by our cannon and 
mortars, but I think I am daily recovering. 

I am, etc., W. P. 

P. S. I have already a number of men enlisted, and 
as no clothing is yet arrived, I must advance money to 
clothe them, at least such as are in want, and if our 
regimentals are not altered,^those that are now to be 
sent over may serve for another year. My good friend, 
Alderman Baker, recommends Mr. Brice Fisher to pro- 
vide the clothing for the regiment hereafter. If you 
and he think there can be no inconvenience in the 
same, I submit it to you and that gentleman whether, 
if some of the cloth were sent over here in pieces, it 
might not be made up to fit the men better. 

[To Governor Belcher of New Jersey.] 

Boston, February 18, 1755. 

I received, some time last December, his Majesty's 
orders to raise a regiment of foot for the service and 
defence of his Majesty's provinces in America, and to 
correspond with your Excellency and the several gov- 
ernors of the colonies. With said orders I had the copy 
of a circular letter to the governors of North America, 
dated the 26th of October last, which I am sure you 
will endeavor to comply with. 

I doubt not but you will with pleasure afford your 
best assistance to me or any of my officers, not only by 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 275 

your duty to his Majesty, but from the regard you have 
for me. If any of your gentlemen would supply my 
lieutenant-colonel, James F. Mercer, with what money 
he may have occasion for in the regiment, and take his 
bills on the agent of my regiment, John Colcraft, 
Esquire, I am well assured they would meet with due 
honor. Or as soon as I know he has arrived, I would 
draw the bills and send them to those that supply him. 

Upon the first orders I received to raise the regiment, 
it was to rendezvous at Boston, but since my coming 
here, which was two days past, 1 find that my regiment 
is to rendezvous at New York and Philadelphia, which 
has very much prevented my completing it. Governor 
Shirley has had a thousand advantages over me. I 
hope I shall do my best and leave the event to Him 
who governs all things. My difficulties at present seem 
great. 

I hope, since we are to rendezvous so near your gov- 
ernment, I shall have a considerable number of brave 
fellows enlisted there, and the pleasure of soon taking 
my dear old friend by the hand. W. P. 

[To the Eight Honorable Henry Fox, Esquire, (Lord Halifax).] 

Boston, February 23, 1755. 

I had the honor to write you the 21st of December 
last, in answer to yours of October 6th, since which, 
upon my arrival in town a day or two past, from my 
place of residence about seventy miles north, I have the 
honor to receive your letter of the 4th of November last. 
I am greatly obliged to you for your congratulations 
upon his Majesty's appointment of me to the command 
of one of the two regiments to be raised for the defence 
of his colonies in North America. 

I have received, by the hands of Lieutenant- Colonel 



276 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPEREELL. 

Mercer, blank commissions for two captains, the captain- 
lieutenant, four lieutenants, and four ensigns ; and in 
the disposal of them I shall pay the strictest regard to 
his Majesty's commands, which, in justice to myself, 1 
must say, and beg leave to assure you upon my honor, 
perfectly corresponds with the resolution I had taken 
before the receipt of the same, not to avail myself of 
the least advantage, but to make his Majesty's service 
the invariable rule of my conduct in disposing of them. 
Accordingly, when I was some time since solicited for 
a captain's commission by a gentleman that married 
my only child, whose solicitations had the countenance 
of no small number of our best people, and who is a 
member of our general assembly of superior influence, 
and was greatly serviceable in that station the last war, 
inasmuch as I knew that I could command his interest 
for the service of the regiment, without gratifying him 
in this particular, I made no hesitation of denying him 
his request, and laid myself under an obligation to 
another, provided he could seasonably enlist a certain 
number of men for the service. And as such has been 
my disinterested conduct hitherto, and as I can assure 
you was the case the last war, when I had the disposal 
of a number of blank commissions in the regiment I 
had then the honor to command, I hope you will have 
no doubt of my acting in future upon like generous 
principles.* And I should now do myself the honor to 
transmit you a list of the officers' names, and assign 
my reasons for the appointment of them respectively ; 
but the short time I have been in town, and the vessel's 



* The secretary of war, (Mr. Fox,) in reply to this letter, says : 
" Your conduct in the disposition of the commissions sent you is 
truly disinterested." See Dr. Stevens's funeral sermon. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 277 

sudden departure by which this goes, will not admit of 
it. I must therefore beg your indulgence till another 
opportunity offers, which will not be long first, when 
you may depend on my putting what remains of your 
commands in execution. 

I am sorry to observe the officers of my regiment are 
to receive pay only from the day they enter their com- 
missions with Mr. Pitcher, commissary of the musters, 
or his deputy. But when it is considered that upon the 
receipt of his Majesty's commands on or about the 20th 
of December last, I immediately employed as many 
persons in recruiting for the regiment as I expected to 
provide for (some of whom I now find will be disap- 
pointed), and that they have been constantly in the 
service ever since, and that Mr. Pitcher is at a great dis- 
tance from hence, and that it will require some consid- 
erable time to enter their commissions with him, I hope 
that this order will be so far dispensed with, as that 
they will be allowed pay for the time they have been in 
actual service. As none of the officers appointed by 
his Majesty for my regiment have arrived till very lately, 
and much the greater part of them are still wanting, I 
have had no assistance but from the few that I could 
engage to provide for, and they being very much dis- 
persed, I am not able to ascertain the number now 
enlisted, but from my last advices from them it exceeded 
four hundred. You are sensible how great an advan- 
tage Governor Shirley must have had over me in filling 
his regiment, not only from his having the appointment 
of all officers, civil and military, within this government,, 
but he has the filling up also of all the commissions for 
the two regiments now raising for his Majesty's service 
in Nova Scotia, to aid him in complying with his 
engagement, which enables him to reward every person 

24 



278 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

that assists him, and their number is far from being 
small. 

By my first orders from Sir Thomas Robinson, my 
regiment was to rendezvous at Boston, and Governor 
Shirley's at New York and Philadelphia. But upon 
receiving a duplicate, I find this order is reversed. Had 
I been apprised of this sooner, I should have sent my 
recruiting officers chiefly to the southward, which would 
have saved the charge of transporting a considerable 
number of recruits, raised in New Hampshire and 
Maine, in vessels to the southern governments. I shall, 
in order to prevent an increase of this charge, order my 
officers into those parts, where I have already directed 
Lieutenant- Colonel Mercer to repair. W. P. 

Soon after this Sir William repaired to New York to 
superintend the concerns of his regiment. Whilst 
remaining here he received many respectful attentions 
from persons of distinction, particularly from Hon. P. 
V. B. Livingston. 

The encroachments of the French and the defeat of 
Washington, with other indications of impending war, 
induced the British government to send General Brad- 
dock, early in the spring of 1755, to assist the colonies 
with a respectable body of regulars. He assembled the 
colonial governors in Virginia, to decide upon a plan 
of military operations, and it was concluded to attempt 
three expeditions. The first against Fort DuQuesne, 
now Pittsburgh, by Braddock and his regular troops; 
the second against Crown Point, by provincials from 
the northern colonies and some Indians ; and the third 
against Niagara, by American regulars, consisting of 
Shirley's and Pepperrell's regiments, and a body of 
Indians. Both Shirley and Pepperrell had recently 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 279 

received the appointment of major-general, the former 
having precedence, and thereby was next in command 
to Braddock of the British regulars and provincial 
troops in America.* Braddock's defeat and death, and 
the retreat of Washington with the remnant of the 
army, was the result of the first expedition. The 
second, under General Johnson, marched from Albany 
late in the summer. General Lyman, of Connecticut, 
led the van of five thousand troops up the Hudson to 
within fourteen miles of Lake George, where he halted 
and built Fort Lyman, afterwards named Fort Edward. 
General Johnson soon followed with provisions and 
munitions of war, and leaving a strong garrison at the 
fort, proceeded with Lyman to the lake shore, where 



* An interesting history of Braddock's expedition, founded on origi- 
nal documents copied at the colonial office in London, has recently 
appeared In the transactions of the Pennsylvania Historical Society, 
from which we extract the following curious item, from the Instruc- 
tions given by the Duke of Cumberland to Braddock on his departure 
for America. 

" Should the Ohio expedition continue any considerable time, and 
Pcpperrell's and Shirley's regiments be found sufficient to undertake, 
in the mean while, the reduction of Niagara, his Royal Highness 
would have you consider whether you could go there In person, leav- 
ing the command of the troops on the Ohio to some officer on whom 
you might depend, unless you shall think It better for the service to 
send some person whom you had designed to command on the Ohio ; 
but this Is a nice affair, and claims your particular attention. Colonel 
Shirley Is the next commander after you, wherefore. If you should 
send such an officer, he must conduct himself so as to appear only in 
quality of a friend or counsellor In the presence of Colonel Shirley ; 
and his Royal Highness Is of opinion that the officer must not pro- 
duce or make mention of the commission you give him to command, 
except in a case of absolute necessity." 

Letter from aid-de-camp of Duke of Cumberland to General Brad- 
dock, In History of Braddock's defeat, p. 398. 



280 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Fort William Henry was afterwards erected. Baron 
Dieskau, commander of the French and Canadians, 
ascended Lake Champlain from Montreal, to meet and 
give battle to the provincials and Indians. He ap- 
proached near Fort Edward, but finding his Canadian 
troops and Indians unwilling to face the cannon, he 
changed his plan and marched towards Johnson's and 
Lyman's camp, intending to surprise it. 

Johnson supposing him to be still investing Fort 
Edward, sent Colonel Ephraim Williams, with one 
thousand men, to cut off his retreat to Canada; but 
they unexpectedly met Dieskau's troops on their way to 
Johnson's camp, and being outflanked by them, received 
a sudden and destructive fire, killing Colonel Williams 
and Hendricks, the Indian leader, and many men, com- 
pelling the remainder to retreat. Johnson and Lyman 
received the news from the returning fugitives, and 
drawing up their men in order of battle, sustained a 
long and vigorous attack, and finally repulsed the 
French and mortally wounded their commander Dies- 
kau. Johnson being wounded early in the fight, the 
command devolved on Lyman, who conducted it to a 
successful issue.* 

A detachment of New Hampshire troops marched 
from Fort Edward and came upon the retreating 
French just after halting for refreshment, and drove 
them back towards Ticonderoga. The total loss of the 
French was six hundred killed. Some of the pro- 
vincials remained during the winter to erect Fort Wil- 



* Johnson, from feelings of jealousy towards Lyman, withheld from 
him, in his official report of the battle, a due share of credit for his 
services, which resulted in a settled enmity between the two generals 
and their partizans. 



DURING THE FREXCH WAR OF 1755. 281 

liam Henry under the direction of Colonel Gridley, the 
same who planned Pepperrell's batteries at Louisburg, 
and thirty years after marked out the one on Bunker's 
Hill. For this partial success of Johnson and Lyman 
at Lake George, Governor Shirley received the thanks 
of the king, not as a participator in the conflict, but as 
commander of the British army in America after Brad- 
dock's death. 

The third expedition against Fort Niagara and Fron- 
tinac was under Shirley's immediate command. His 
and Pepperrell's regiments and a large body of Indians 
of the six nations, left Albany for Oswego, there to em- 
bark on Lake Ontario. But the difficulties attending 
the transportation of provisions and munitions of war, 
and the desertion of batteaux, men, and wagons, 
delayed the arrival at Oswego till late, in August, and 
the troops were not ready to embark until the middle of 
September, when storms set in that rendered lake navi- 
gation dangerous, and which led to a postponement of 
the enterprise to another year. Shirley left Oswego for 
Albany, giving the command of the two regiments to 
Lieutenant-Colonel Mercer, who, in the following win- 
ter, built two forts. Thus ended the three expeditions 
of 1755, on the northern and western frontier. 

But an enterprise was prosecuted in another direction. 
The boundaries of Nova Scotia, as we have seen, were 
unsettled, and while Shirley and Gallisoniere were en- 
gaged at Paris in discussing the subject, the French, 
who occupied the disputed territory, had recently erected 
forts on the two shores of the isthmus, at Beau Sejour 
and Gaspereau, and at the mouth of the St. John's. 
John Winslow, a major-general of militia in Massachu- 
setts, was sent with three thousand men, holding the 
rank of lieutenant-colonel, and was joined by Colonel 

24* 



282 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Monkton with three hundred British regulars, and hold- 
ing rank superior to Winslow, conferred by Shirley. 
The forts made very little resistance, and the French 
troops were readily expelled from the Bay of Fundy. 
But what was to be done with the twelve or fifteen 
thousand French colonists settled at Chignecto, Minas, 
and along the river Annapolis ? " It was thirty years," 
says Hildreth, " since Nova Scotia had become a British 
province ; but these settlers, who had more than doubled 
their number in the interval, continued still French, not 
in language, religion, and manners only, but also in 
attachments, receiving their priests from Canada, and 
always ready to favor any movement that tended to 
restore them to their ancient allegiance. By the terms 
granted when the British authorities took possession of 
the province, they were excused from any obligation to 
bear arms against France, and were thence known as 
French neutrals. But they did not act up even to that 
character. Three hundred of their young men had been 
taken in arms at the surrender of Beau Sejour, and 
one of their priests had been actively employed as a 
French agent. To curb these hostile people, would 
require several expensive garrisons. If allowed to quit 
the country and go where they pleased, they would 
retire to Canada and Cape Breton, and strengthen the 
enemy there. To devise some scheme adequate to the 
emergency, Lawrence, lieutenant-governor of Nova 
Scotia, consulted with Boscawen and Mostyn, com- 
manders of the British fleet, which had just arrived on 
the coast, after its cruise to intercept Dieskau. These 
military men took counsel with Belcher, chief justice of 
the province, a son of the former governor of Massachu- 
setts. The result was, notwithstanding the express 
provision in the capitulation of Beau Sejour, that the 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 283 

neighboring inhabitants should not be disturbed, a plan 
for treacherously kidnapping the Acadians, and trans- 
porting them to the various British provinces. The 
capitulation of Beau Sejour did not apply to the settle- 
ments of Minas and Annapolis, who strenuously denied 
any complicity with the French invaders, and which 
never was proved against them. 

" Knowing how much was to be dreaded from despair, 
the ruthless design against them was kept a profound 
secret. Assembled under various false pretences at 
their parish churches, they were surrounded with troops, 
made prisoners, and hurried on board the ships assigned 
for their transportation ! Wives separated from their 
husbands, in the confusion of embarking, and children 
from their parents, were carried off to distant colonies, 
never again to see each other. Their lands, crops, cattle, 
and every thing except household furniture, which they 
could not carry away, and money, of which they had 
little or none, were declared forfeit to the crown ; and, to 
insure the starvation of such as fled to the woods, and 
so to compel their surrender, the growing crops were 
destroyed, and the barns and houses burned, with all 
their contents ! " These broken-hearted and disconsolate 
exiles were a burden to the provinces, and it was an 
object to get rid of them. Some made their way to 
France, others to the West Indies and Louisiana — the 
expenses of their transport being paid in many instances 
by the colonial assemblies — and many of them sank 
into fatal despair. The removal of this humble people, 
even in a humane manner, was, to our apprehension, 
impolitic and uncalled for. The hostile influence they 
exerted could have been neutralized by transporting a 
tenth part of the male adults to the provinces as hostages 
for the good behavior of those that remained, and there 



284 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

compelled to support themselves by manual labor during 
the war. It was, however, the opinion of leading men 
of the day, that they should be removed in a mass, 
in order to exclude the malign influence their priests 
exercised over them and the Indians in time of war, 
and Pepperrell, as we have seen, (page 240,) was in 
favor of the measure, although his humanity would 
doubtless have revolted at the treacherous and cruel 
manner in which it was effected.* 

When the three expeditions against DuQuesne, Crown 
Point, and Niagara were projected, it was the expecta- 
tion of all that Pepperrell would go against Niagara, at 
the head of his own regiment, under Shirley. But in 
June, while he was filling his regiment in New York, he 
received from the king a commission of major-general, 
which entitled him to a higher command than that of 
a single regiment. Mr. Sparhawk, representative in 
the legislature, writes to him June 14th : " We see in 
our country journal an extract of news from the New 
York paper, which assures of your commission as major- 
general being got to your hands. Rev. Dr. Chauncy 
tells me that Doctor Clarke, who you know has a great 
intimacy with the governor, says, that now you are a 
general, you can't be obliged to go under Shirley to 
Niagara; and since that. Doctor Gardner, another that 
has his ear much, told me that you were not obliged to 
go, now you had this promotion, and asked me if I 
could tell your determination ; I told him I did n't know 
that you could be excused if you desired it, and that 
from your advices to your family you fully intended to 

* Mrs. Williams, of Rhode Island, has written an interesting tale 
relating to the seizure, captivity, and dispersion of the French Neu- 
trals, and Mr. Longfellow has embalmed their memory in his beautiful 
poem, " Evangeline.*' 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 285 

go ; which I thought was the safest ansAver I could 
make. However, I hope you will fully weigh the 
matter, and if you can, consistently with your honor, 
excuse yourself, that you will do so. You know that 
when you went to Louisburg, though Mr. Shirley tarried 
in Boston the whole time, his friends endeavored to as- 
cribe a great deal to him, and as he will now be at the 
head of this expedition, distinguish yourself as much as 
you will, he will have the honor and applause. On the 
other hand, if you refuse to go, I can't tell what con- 
struction your enemies will give it. Your friends 
will justify you, and all others that consider it impar- 
tially." 

Again he writes : " The governor is yet here, (24th,) 
and some endeavors have been used to bring the General 
Court into an address, to prevent his proceeding, which 
was treated with the utmost sneer, and but one hand in 
the whole House for it. The court's sitting is the only 
reason, it is said, for his tarry : we desired a recess last 
Saturday ; but still we are kept, to consider things over 
again which have been rejected by a large majority. 
The above affair was attempted last Saturday for a 
second time, but ended only in an address to prompt 
rather than prevent his going. I suppose you will see 
it in print. There is a great deal of talk in town upon 
the subject, and many conjectures. I am concerned to 
have you fairly excused from the expedition, which it is 
said here you may be if you please, and it is inconsistent, 
as you are a general officer, to proceed under one of the 
same rank. I hope you'll be furnished with the safest 
and best advice, and act with all possible caution, for 

upon any slip or blunder of S y? oi* upon his 

losing his popularity, which seems to be going fast, or 
in case of sickness or death, it is easy to judge who wiU 



286 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

succeed. I could greatly enlarge, but I fear to venture 
too much in a letter." 

* * * * a Our friend Mr. Gridley is now a member 
in the House for Brookline, and I cannot but think that, 
if you ever intend to present another memorial to the 
court in respect of your services at Louisburg, some 
time this year will give you the best chance." 

* * * * Again : " I cannot help questioning whether 
something or other won't intervene to prevent the expe- 
dition you are destined to proceed upon, as I have 
hinted already. But time alone will make us certain 
as to this matter. Surely two thousand men can never 
be thought a proper number to render it barely probable 
that we shall succeed, and our hero is of too much con- 
sequence to be put at hazard, on any occasion. A war 
with France may happen, and a blow at the root be 
thought necessary, instead of attacks upon the branches. 
If I really thought that the intended expedition to 
Niagara would proceed without a very great augmen- 
tation, I should be deeply concerned. But this I flatter 
myself will not be the case. 

* * * * " It is rumored here that Admiral Boscawen 
was seen off' Newfoundland about eighteen days since, 
and about the same time that a squadron of men-of-war 
and transports from France was met. I have a letter 
which says that war is agreed, on all hands, to be 
necessary, and will be declared as soon as they hear 
from America." 

Shirley ordered Sir William to take command of the 
eastern frontier, which, residing as he did in Maine, and 
knowing more of its condition and danger than any 
other officer, was on the whole a very judicious appoint- 
ment. On his arrival at Kittery, he writes to Lord 
Halifax respecting his regiment : — 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 287 



[To the Honorable Henry Fox, Esquire.] 

August 19, 1755. 

Inclosed I give you the trouble of the returns of my 
regiment, which I now hope soon to have completed. 
This province, and, indeed, the other provinces in New 
England, have had such a call for men to fill the regi- 
ments employed at Nova Scotia, Crown Point, etc., 
that it has been extremely difficult to get men to enlist 
in the kino's reo:iment for life. The inhabitants of these 
provinces are in general quite averse to it, whilst no 
people can be more ready to serve his Majesty on any 
expedition, provided they are commanded by the officers 
of their own country, and can be discharged when the 
particular service they enlisted for is ended, and they 
are not held to garrison duties after places are taken ; 
which, as they have been long inured to constant action 
and hard labor, is found to enfeeble them, render them 
unhealthy and unfit for further service, if it do not 
wholly destroy them. An army of these North Ameri- 
cans are, I conceive, the only fit men to meet a mixed 
army of French and Indians in the woods ; at least, in 
order for success, the English forces must consist in 
some measure of our New England officers and men, 
who are acquainted with their manner of fighting, and 
can deal with them in their own way ; and I think that 
if General Braddock had had a regiment or two of our 
people with him, under the command of suitable officers, 
to clear the woods of the enemy, he would have marched 
safely with his regular troops to the Ohio, and given a 
good account of them, instead of meeting with so shock- 
ing a defeat, as you will find related in the inclosed 
print, to which I beg leave to refer you. You will find, 
by comparing my former advices of this unhappy event 



288 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

with what I now send you, that those were but very 
imperfect, but they were the most authentic that could 
then be had. You '11 pardon my transmitting them, as 
well as the freedom I have used in so plainly exhibiting 
my sentiments, which I could not, consistently with my 
duty to my king and country, avoid doing. 

I hope, ere this reaches you, that suitable bedding 
will be sent out for my regiment, to preserve it during ■ ^^ 
our inclement winter season, which is extremely severe 
in these parts. W. P. 

The frontier posts being garrisoned. General Shirley 
returned from Oswego to Albany, where he received 
from England a commission as commander-in-chief of his 
Majesty's forces in North America, and thence he pro- 
ceeded to New York, and (December 12) held a council 
of war of the governors of the colonies of Massachusetts, 
New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut, 
those of the other colonies failing to appear. It was 
there agreed that ten thousand men should be raised for 
another expedition against Crown Point, six thousand 
for one on Lake Ontario, and three thousand for an 
attack upon Fort DuQuesne ; and two thousand were 
to be sent up the Kennebec River to the Chaudiere, 
and descending to the mouth of that river within three 
miles of Quebec, were to keep all that part of Canada 
in a state of alarm. 

Shirley returned thence to Albany, intending to prose- 
cute a winter's expedition against Ticonderoga. But 
frost and snow, necessary for transporting stores, failing 
to appear, he abandoned the enterprise, and proceeded 
to Boston, where he was received with demonstrations 
of respect from the military and both branches of the 
legislature, and treated with an evening banquet; all 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 289 

which was made the more ostentatious from a desire 
to equal New York in its honors conferred upon Gen- 
eral Johnson, between whom and Governor Shirley a 
jealous rivalry was evidently arising. 

Although war had existed in America two years, it 
had not yet been formally declared by either of the 
home governments. But besides the hostile forces sent 
by England, there had also been sent by France the last 
year, a fleet from Brest, with warlike preparations to 
Canada, and Boscawen was sent after it with a squadron 
to watch its motions, who overtook and captured two 
of the vessels, the Lys and Alcyde near Newfoundland. 
On hearing this, France determined on hostilities, and 
recalled her minister from London, and both nations 
declared war. The Earl of Loudon was appointed 
commander-in-chief of the British land forces in 
America, and until his arrival, General Abercromby 
was ordered to supersede Shirley as commander, who 
sailed immediately, and, on his arrival, proceeded to 
Albany, where the provincial troops were assembled,, 
waiting foi* a commander until the end of June. 

In January, 1756, the legislature of Massachusetts 
was applied to by Governor Shirley for three thousand 
men, and on their plea of poverty, he loaned the prov- 
ince 30,000 pounds sterling out of the king's money in 
his hands. Early in February he offered the command 
of the troops which were to operate against Crown: 
Point to Pepperrell, by which he aimed more effectually 
to secure his strenuous exertions in the council, and: 
render his own measures more popular in the legislature. 
But having accomplished his object, he revoked his 
promise to Pepperrell, and conferred the appointment 
on General Winslow, the transporter of the French 

25 



290 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPEREELL. 

Neutrals, much to the dissatisfaction of Pepperrell, as 
will presently appear. 

The provincial troops assembled at Albany under 
Winslow for the campaign of 1756. They fell short of 
the number proposed to be raised, and were probably 
not sufficient to attack Crown Point. But Abercrombie 
brought over two regiments, which with eight indepen- 
dent companies raised by New York and Carolina, 
constituted an adequate force. The combined army 
under Lord Loudon, after pressing every wagon 
within thirty miles of Albany into public service, com- 
menced their march, the provincials being in advance 
under General Winslow, in order to keep them sepa- 
rate from the regulars, and under their own officers. 
But ere they had reached their place of destination, the 
sad news arrived that Oswego had fallen. 

It appears that after the death of Baron Dieskau the 
preceding year, M. Montcalm took command of the 
Canadian forces, and on the 10th of August 
* approached the forts of Oswego, on Lake On- 
tario, with 5,000 regulars, Canadians, and Indians. 
After a gallant defence, and the death of Colonel 
Mercer, the American forces, — Shirley's and Pepper- 
rell's regiments, consisting of fourteen hundred men, 
capitulated. Montcalm destroyed the forts, and re- 
treated with the prisoners to Montreal, taking also 121 
pieces of artillery, fourteen mortars, and an immense 
quantity of stores and ammunition. 

On this disastrous event, every plan of offensive 
operation was immediately relinquished. General 
Winslow was ordered not to proceed against Ticon- 
deroga, but to fortify his camp. General Webb, with 
about fourteen hundred men, was posted at the great 



DURIXG THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 291 

carrying place, and Sir William Johnson was stationed 
at the German flats. The proposed expedition up the 
Kennebec, to destroy the settlements on the Chaudiere, 
resulted in a mere scouting party, which explored the 
country. The attempt against Fort DuQuesne was 
not prosecuted. Thus ended the campaigns of 1756 
against Canada, — nothing gained, Oswego lost, and 
the country impoverished. 

General Shirley returned to his government in Mas- 
sachusetts 9th of August, and soon after issued orders 
to the colonels of militia to draft men from their regi- 
ments for the frontier. Sir William being still com- 
mander of a regiment of militia, received one among 
the rest, and on the 31st of August he writes : — 

Your excellency's warrant to draft ten men out of 
this regiment, I received this day, and have sent war- 
rants to effect the same ; but to have them at hand by 
the third of September, I am afraid is impossible, but 
nothing shall be wanting on my part. I am grieved 
at the loss of Oswego, and am afraid Maine will 
share the same fate, more particularly the forts Halifax 
and Weston, (on the Kennebec,) as the enemy has been 
often discovered lurking about the towns, and the 
frontier here is of larger extent than all the rest of 
Massachusetts. We used to have hundreds of men to 
assist us from other counties in time of war, but all 
our forts and marching scouts are now raised here, and 
the repeated impresses have drove the young men 
away, and being remote from any other part of the 
province of Massachusetts, we cannot expect any as- 
sistance before it may be too late. 

The regiment of militia in Maine, which has been 
under my command about thirty years, I desire you 



292 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

will appoint some other person commander of, and 
excuse, Sir, your Excellency's most obedient humble 
servant, W. P. 

In the last communication from Shirley to Pepperrell, 
August 31st, he complains that officers in his Maine 
regiment received fines from drafted men and let them 
off", and orders him to inquire into the matter. Pepper- 
rell replies : — 

Pursuant to your order I have made strict inquiry 
relating to any fines being received by any officers be- 
longing to this regiment of militia from any person or 
persons impressed against Crown Point, or any other 
expedition, and they solemnly declare they never re- 
ceived any thing whatsoever, which I verily believe true, 
for good and satisfactory reasons ; for on the expedition 
to Louisburg one third of the army went from Maine, 
since which they have been so harassed by guarding 
and fortifying their own houses, and are reduced to a 
degree of poverty so low as to be unable to pay a fine. 
Your obedient servant, W. P. 

Pepperrell had long known that Shirley was un- 
friendly to him. Waldo had apprised him of it in 1748, 
as did the letters of Sparhawk. But not a word escapes 
him indicative of a corresponding feeling on his part, 
until the command promised him against Crown Point 
was revoked in favor of Winslow. He was silent and 
cautious until this unmistakable evidence was exhibited 
to the public gaze. After which, he held little or 
no further intercourse with him, except on official 
duties. 

He wrote to Major Craven : " Having had the honor 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 293 

to be president of his Majesty's council of this province 
for several years, I have been much hurried on com- 
mittees to assist on the expedition against Crown Point. 
I expected to have been there with my regiment within 
a few weeks, as Governor Shirley, ever since the begin- 
ning of last month, told me that I was to take the com- 
mand of the troops on the expedition against Crown 
Point, and that I should take my regiment with me ; 
but three days since he sent me a letter in which 
he says he could not do it. I hope we shall soon have 
letters from London." 

[To his Excellency the Eight Honorable Henry Fox.] 

Kitten/, April 19, 1756. 

I had the honor to receive your letter of November 
last, in which you are pleased to let me know that his 
Majesty had been pleased to declare his intentions 
of appointing you Secretary of State. I heartily con- 
gratulate you. Sir, and sincerely hope you will be con- 
tinued for a long time to come, a great blessing to his 
Majesty and to all his dominions. 

I take the liberty of letting you know that early in 
February last, General Shirley told me that I was to 
have command of the expedition against Crown Point, 
and to have my own regiment with me to join the pro- 
vincial troops. I told him that nothing in my power 
should be wanting to promote his Majesty's interests. 
I was likewise desired by some of the leading men of 
the other governments to head that expedition. But I 
received a letter from him dated the 26th of said Feb- 
ruary, by his secretary, of which the inclosed is a copy, 
by which you will see that he has since appointed Gen- 
eral Winslow commander of said army. I hope this 

25* 



294 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

year's campaign will prove more successful than the 
last. With the utmost esteem, etc., W. P. 

Very few would have submitted so quietly to all 
these slights and freaks of Governor Shirley. In accom- 
plishing any ambitious project he could be very gracious. 
In the expedition against Louisburg, he placed Pepper- 
rell in command, because the influence of his popularity 
was indispensable in raising an army. After he had 
tendered the command of the expedition to Pepperrell, 
and prevailed on him with repeated solicitation to 
accept it, he wrote to Warren, then in the West Indies, 
asking him to send assistance, saying, " if the service in 
Vv^hich you are engaged would permit you to come your- 
self and take upon you the command of the expedition^ it 
would be, 1 doubt not, a most happy event for his 
Majesty's service." This message was unknown to 
Pepperrell until Warren, by way of enforcing his own 
plan of operations upon Pepperrell at Louisburg, who 
thought them not feasible, disclosed it to him, adding, 
(however, " I do not mention this from any desire of 
command, because I think it impossible to do one's 
duty well in two capacities, both by sea and land." 

In his letter to the Duke of Newcastle, and after he 
had surveyed the premises at Louisburg and collected 
: accurate information on the spot from all reliable 
sources, Shirley compliments the provincial troops in 
ammeasured terms, and also Commodore Warren, but 
of Pepperrell's faithful services, although he had done 
all that a vigilant and intrepid commander could do, 
;and had advanced a large sum out of his own fortune 
to carry on the expedition, and received but partial 
remuneration for his services and sacrifices, he says 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 295 

nothing complimentary. It is doubtful if a parallel 
case can be found, where a commander-in-chief, as 
Shirley was, treated the executive officer, after a suc- 
cessful battle or siege, so indifferently. 

Again, when Shirley wanted the influence of Pep- 
perrell to assist as president of the council in raising 
troops for the Crown Point expedition, he promised 
him the command of it early in February, and having 
gained his object he transferred the promised honor to 
General Winslow. 

Pepperrell writes to Captain Peter Kenwood, " Gov- 
ernor Shirley would not let me go against the French 
last year and this, and now I think I am too old. 
Affairs here have been managed but poorly, and now 
we are in miserable circumstances, and have lost many 
of our young men and our strength. 

" Things have looked dark in America. We have 
done nothing here against the French for two or three 
years past ; we have lost Oswego, but it is to be 
observed that there was no American officer in com- 
mand there." 

But Shirley's popularity and influence had, early in 
the spring, reached their culminating point. He had 
lost popular favor in the provinces three years before, by 
marrying, at the age of sixty, a young French girl in 
Paris of the Catholic faith, but he was now losing 
public confidence with government. William Tyler 
writes to Pepperrell in June, from Boston, that it was 
the general opinion that the governor is in disgrace at 
home. " You will see by the paper that he has the 
thanks of his Majesty for his good services, but it was 
soon after the battle of Lake George, (by Johnson and 
Lyman,) and not after his services at Oswego. Lord 
Loudon is by this time arrived, as several vessels 



296 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

arrived at Rhode Island, saw the fleet off." Shirley- 
received his recall in a letter from Mr. Fox, secretary of 
State, early in July, acquainting him that his presence 
in England was deemed necessary to his Majesty's 
service, as he was able to give much information rela- 
tive to the state of affairs in America, and that a frigate 
was ordered to convey him.* 

On his return to Kittery, at the close of the session, 
Sir William received a letter from his old friend and his 
father's friend. Governor Belcher of New Jersey, by the 
son of Colonel Burr of General Wolcott's regiment at 
Louisburg, and father of Colonel Aaron Burr, after- 
wards vice-president of the United States, and returned 
him the following answer : — 

[To his Excellency Jonathan Belcher.] 

Dear Sir, — I am honored with your Excellency's 
letter of April 17, by the hands of the reverend and 
worthy Mr. Burr. I can truly say that it fills my heart 
with joy to hear that your useful life is preserved, and 
hope it will continue many years. 

I observe what you are pleased to write relating to 
New Jersey college. My lot is cast in a place where 
the people are very poor and much exposed to the 
enemy, learning is greatly neglected, and all around me 
are numbers that are in need of charity. But your 

* He was not sent back to New England either as governor or 
general, but was appointed governor of one of the Bahama islands, 
and his son succeeded to the office. He returned to Roxbury and 
died at his seat March 24, 1771, and was buried in King's Chapel 
with public honors. He left no property. He was educated at 
Edinburgh University, read law, was an elegant writer. Beside 
State papers, he published, in 1765, a tragedy, and Birth of Hercules, 
a masque. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 297 

desire has ever been regarded as a command to me, and 
can I now refuse my old and most valued friend ? No, 
I have done as you desired. 

My dear and valued pastor Mr. Stevens, and myself 
talk of paying you a visit.* 

I sincerely wish the best of blessings on you and 
yours, and am, with best respects to yourself and lady, 
dear Sir, etc., etc., W. P. 

Sir William writes to his friend Kilby, March, 1757 : 
" I am hurried in raising men for the provincial army 
under my Lord Loudon, and they will not let me be 
clear from the command of the militia in Maine, which 
gives me much trouble, considering I cannot be so active 
as I was formerly." From Kittery he writes, in June, to 
the council in Boston, that since his arrival he had 
endeavored to put that part of the province in as defen- 
sible a state against the enemy as was in his power, 
and had given orders to Colonel Gushing, " if there 
should appear five or more ships on the coast of Maine 
at one and the same time, to send me an express imme- 
diately." 

After General Shirley had embarked for London, on 
the 12th of September, 1756, the government devolved 
on Lieutenant-Governor Phipps. By the death of 
Phipps, which occurred the March following, the gov- 
ernment was administered by the council, of which Sir 
William was president and de facto governor, until the 
arrival of Governor Pownall. Sir William was ap- 
pointed, by the council, commander of Castle William 
in Boston harbor, and of the whole military forces of 

* Governor Belcher died the following year, August, 1757, at 
Elizabethtown, aged seventy-six. 



298 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Massachusetts, with the rank of lieutenant-general — 
offices of great honor and trust in time of war. 

Governor Pownall on his arrival, August 3, 1757, 
was received with numerous and flattering addresses. 
In a few days he performed the ceremony of taking 
possession of Castle William. When Sir William pre- 
sented the keys, he observed that that fortress was the 
key of the province, which gave the governor an agree- 
able opportunity of complimenting the conqueror of 
Louisburg. " The interest of the province," he replied, 
"is in your heart; I shall therefore be always glad to 
see the keys of it in your hands." 

The plan of the campaign proposed in 1757 by Lou- 
don, and assented to by the military council at Boston, 
was limited to the defence of the frontiers, and an expe- 
dition against Louisburg. Instead of sailing there as 
Pepperrell did early in the spring, Loudon's embarca- 
tion, with six thousand regulars,* was delayed till the 
9th of July, and at Halifax he was joined by a fleet 
from Great Britain of eleven sail of the line, under 
Admiral Holburn, having on board and in transports 
six thousand additional soldiers. Here he lingered with 
his usual indecision, giving further time for the French 
at Louisburg to receive an additional force of seventeen 
ships of the line, which gave them a decided superiority. 
The pusillanimous Loudon then set sail for New 
York. 

During his absence on this futile expedition against 
Louisburg, Montcalm seized the favorable moment to 
concentrate his forces, amounting to eight thousand 
French and Indians, at Montreal, and to ascend Lake 
George and land at its southern extremity, to besiege 
Fort William Henry. Colonel Monroe, the officer 
commanding the fort, had a garrison of two thousand 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 299 

men. The imbecile Webb was encamped at Fort 
Edward, only fourteen miles distant, with four thou- 
sand troops, and might have summoned the militia 
from all the neighboring villages to the rescue, but he 
sent nothing to Fort William Henry save a letter, giv- 
ing an exaggerated account of the French force, and 
advising to capitulate. Montcalm intercepted the letter, 
which he immediately forwarded to Monroe. Yet not 
till many of his guns were burst and his ammunition 
exhausted, did Monroe surrender. The terms of capit- 
ulation were, that the garrison should march out with 
the honors of war, and were to be protected as far as 
Fort Edward. But Montcalm's Indian allies, dissatis- 
fied with the terms, and greedy for plunder, fell upon 
the retreating and disarmed troops. Monroe, with a 
greater part of the men, fell back to the French camp 
for protection. About six hundred fled into the woods, 
and the first who reached Fort Edward reported the 
massacre of the others. Some few were killed or never 
heard of; the rest came in one after another, many of 
them having lost their way and suffered extreme hard- 
ships. 

General Webb, who had remained idle when he 
should have marched forward to the relief of Fort Wil- 
liam Henry, was panic struck, and thought only of 
retreat. Captain Christie, who commanded at Albany, 
partook of the trepidation, and wrote to the governors 
of Connecticut and Massachusetts a doleful appeal. 
" For God's sake exert yourselves to save a sinking 
province ; New York itself may fall ; save a country ; 
prevent the downfall of the British government upon 
this continent." With such an appeal Massachusetts 
awoke and bestirred herself, as if roused by a midnight 
fire bell. The council was in session, and in the gen- 



300 LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

eral consternation all eyes were turned to the victor 
of Louisburg to lead them to the field of battle; and 
the governor gave him the supreme command of all the 
forces of the province. 

[To Sir William Pepperrell, Baronet, major-general of his Majesty's 
forces, and lieutenant-general of this province.] 

August 8, 1757. 

You will repair to Springfield or any other part of 
the frontiers of the province, and there collect forces 
now to be raised for the immediate defence of the 
country. 

August 10. — Send off* all the men you can possibly 
induce to go, on horseback, and cooperate with Sir John 
Sinclair. 

Again. Since I wrote you in the morning, the coun- 
cil have advised me to order up to the western frontiers 
one fourth part of each regiment in the province, ex- 
cepting those in Maine, Nantucket, and Dukes county ; 
and I have issued my orders accordingly. The council 
have likewise advised the forming a train of artillery of 
eight pieces of cannon under proper officers, which I 
shall put in execution, and send thither also as fast as 
possible ; and I desire that you would advise Captain 
Christie, at Albany, what I am doing, and that you 
would give the necessary orders for provisions for the 
people. 

Again, same day. I must desire you will form a 
magazine at Springfield, and if the enemy should 
approach our frontiers you will order all wagons west 
of Connecticut River to have their wheels knocked oflT, 
and to drive away all horses, and to order in all pro- 
visions that can be brought off", and what cannot, to de- 
stroy. Your most obedient servant, 

T. POWNALL. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 301 



[Sir William writes to Captain Christie.] 

Springfield, August 13, 1757. 

Sir, — When I came here from Boston by his Excel- 
lency Governor Pownall's direction, in order more 
effectually to forward the several regiments of militia 
that should be necessary for the relief of the garrison 
at Fort William Henry, etc., I found Colonel Worth- 
ington, Colonel Williams, and Colonel Ruggles' regi- 
ments were all marched forward for that purpose, and 
some of them even before the governor could get orders 
to them to proceed. Such was his Excellency's care to 
send, and such the readiness of these people to go to 
the assistance of the distressed in this most important 
situation of his Majesty's affairs above you, that in 
truth this part of the province seems almost deserted, 
and should an enemy now attack them, its frontier on 
the north is left in a most dangerous condition, the 
whole militia near, or within forty or fifty miles, being 
drawn off for the relief of the garrisons on Hudson's 
River. Colonel Chandler's regiment arrived here last 
night having travelled, most of them, fifty miles, and the 
very heavy rains yesterday so hurt their bread that I was 
obliged to order a new supply to be baked for them 
here, which, in their great haste, they received even be- 
fore it was cold. I shall forward them all as fast as 
possible after the other three regiments, most of whom I 
hope are by this time at Fort Edward, or very near it. 
As they marched with the greatest freedom and alacrity 
and in great numbers, although with serious detriment 
to their private affairs, I trust the same good disposition 
will continue and engage them to hasten with all possi- 
ble expedition ; and I wish they may be the instruments 
of some real service. As soon as I have sent forward 

26 



302 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

all the men that are ordered up from this province, I 
purpose myself to follow after them as fast as possible 
that I may do every thing in my power to repel this 
threatening force and promote the general service. 

W. P. 

[Governor Pownall to Sir William Pepperrell.] 

Boston, August 14, 12 o'clock, M. 

Sir, — You will, before this express arrives, receive 
an account that I have ordered up all the troop of horse 
and a fourth part of the militia to put themselves under 
your command. This will not only enable you to 
secure the frontiers, but send off such further reinforce- 
ments as shall be necessary. Governor Wentworth 
having written me that he had two hundred men ready 
to send off, I have desired him to send a reinforcement 
^''^ to number four. I am forming a train of eight pieces 
of cannon which I shall forward as soon as completed. 

T. P. 

[To Captain Christie.] 

Sir, — I herewith send you a copy of his Excellency's 
letter to me of the 13th of this month, by which you 
will perceive what sense the governor's council of this 
province have of the importance of supporting Fort 
Edward against an attack of the enemy, and prevent- 
ing their further penetrating into the country, after their 
success in th-e reduction of Fort William Henry. As 
it seems by some intelligence General Webb has ob- 
tained, there is no probability that the enemy will 
proceed furtlier, and as the execution of these orders of 
the governor will subject this province to an immense 
expense, and also prevent the ingathering of the harvest 
to the unspeakable damage of the people, it is of the 
utmost importance, therefore, that these people should 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 303 

be ordered to stop, if they are not greatly needed, which, 
by the copy of General Webb's letter to Governor De- 
Lancy, and by the return of some of the regiment by 
Governor DeLancy's countenance and advice, I am 
ready to conclude is the case. If, therefore, the enemy 
are drawn off, I hope you will immediately give me the 
most speedy advice, in order that while we are unhap- 
pily subjected to so much necessary expense, we may 
endeavor as much as possible to prevent that which is 
needless. 

I perceive. Sir, that while those troops are returned 
which went last into the province of New York, those 
whose early zeal carried them as volunteers to Fort 
Edward for the relief of the garrison are detained, on 
which I beg you to consider that being foremost in their 
attempts to relieve the distresses of your forts, they are 
thereby subjected to a longer absence from their families 
and harvests than the rest, and that, too, without their 
consent ; that it will most effectually discourage any of 
our people from displaying a like laudable zeal and 
readiness for such a voluntary service, should there be 
a like unhappy occasion for it hereafter, and will there- 
fore, not only greatly disoblige the persons detained, but 
raise the resentment and uneasiness of multitudes of 
others, whose voluntary service may possibly be of great 
importance in some critical moment yet to come. 
I am, Sir, your most obedient humble servant, 

Wm. Pepperrell. 

He also addresses a line to Governor Pownall : — 

Springfield, August 15, 1757. 

Sir, — Your Excellency's favor of the 13th instant I 
received. Last Saturday morning the remainder of 



304 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Colonel Chandler's regiment went over this river to 
hasten to Fort Edward, and my design was to follow 
them and to hasten them forward ; but finding that the 
enemy did not intend to come down lower than Fort 
William Henry, I could not see any good it would 
answer. W. P. 

On receiving this, the governor writes : "I beg, Sir 
William, you will in due form give my thanks to the 
srallant officers and men who have on this occasion so 
cheerfully turned out to serve their country. I shall 
always retain a very high esteem and honor for them, 
and do every thing that falls within my power to make 
them amends for their fatigues and privations." Thus 
ended the panic occasioned in Massachusetts and Con- 
necticut by the letter from the terrified Captain Christie. 
The commotion was so fruitless in its results, that 
history makes but slight allusion to it, and it would 
have been passed over on the present occasion, but for 
the evidence it affords of the confidence felt by the 
government and people in Sir William Pepperrell as a 
military leader in times of public danger. 

Admiral Knowles, who succeeded Warren as gov- 
ernor of Cape Breton, and made such a disturbance in 
Boston by impressing seamen, and afterwards corre- 
sponded so frequently with Sir William, we hear 
nothing further of, though it is probable that other 
letters passed between them until December, 1757, 
when Sir William wrote him as follows: — 

Not only myself, but the greater part of these 
colonies, were in great hopes of seeing you here last 
summer. 

Last year, Christopher Tyler, son of my widowed 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 305 

sister, has been mate of several vessels, and the ship 
he went mate of last to London, was sold there, and as 
he came a passenger in a vessel to Boston, Captain 
Washing Shirley, commander of his Majesty's ship 
Mermaid, impressed him, and he is still on board said 
ship. My request to you is, that if you should meet 
with him, you will be pleased to prefer him according 
to his merits, which I shall always acknowledge, with 
the several other favors received from you. I sincerely 
wish you the best of blessings, and am, with the utmost 
esteem, honored Sir, your faithful and most obedient 
servant, W. P. 

Early in 1758 the British ministry was changed. 
William Pitt was appointed Secretary of State, and the 
Duke of Newcastle, whose administration and disas- 
trous campaigns in America dipleased the nation, 
superintended domestic affairs only, whilst Pitt assumed 
the control of colonial concerns, and the entire manage- 
ment of the war. Loudon, who had accomplished 
nothing, and exhibited on all occasions an entire unfit- 
ness for colonial warfare, was ordered home. His cha- 
grin must have equalled Shirley's, who when recalled 
had gained no victory, had been charged with tardiness 
in the attempt against Niagara, in 1755, which com- 
pelled him to stop and encamp till another season at 
Oswego, and the subsequent loss at that place of his 
own and Pepperrell's regiment, with a large armament. 
It was, however, a matter of dispute and recrimination 
between him and Loudon, which of the two was most 
in fault. But be this as it may, all the British generals 
were blamed. Braddock was killed, and Webb, Lou- 
don, Shirley, and soon after, Abercrombie, were ordered 
home, for their imbecility or unfitness. 

26* 



306 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

At this time, " the English," says Bancroft, the ac- 
complished historian, " had been driven from every cabin 
in the basin of the Ohio ; Montcalm had destroyed 
every vestige of their power in that of the St. Law- 
rence. France had her posts on each side of the 
Lakes, and at Detroit, at Mackinaw, at Kaskaskia, and 
at New Orleans. The two great valleys of the Missis- 
sippi and the St. Lawrence were connected chiefly by 
three well-known routes, — by way of Waterford to 
Fort DuQuesne, by way of the Maumee to the Wa- 
bash, and by way of Chicago to the Illinois. Of the 
North American continent, the French claimed, and 
seemed to possess, twenty parts in twenty-five, leaving 
four only to Spain, and but one to Britain. The terri- 
tory exceeded that of the English twenty fold. As the 
men composing the garrison at Fort Loudon, in Ten- 
nessee, were but so many hostages in the hands of the 
Cherokees, the claim of France to the valleys of the 
Mississippi and the St. Lawrence seemed established 
by possession." " America and England were humil- 
iated." * 

Sir William writes, February 7, 1758, to his old 
friend, Sir Peter Kenwood, M. P. : "I have not been 
upon any campaign yet, as we had no governor here 
until lately, and Lieutenant-Governor Phipps dying, 
and apprehending a visit from the French, the whole 
council desired me to take command of the castle and 
all the militia of the province, so that considerable part 
of last year I spent my time and estate in visiting the 
frontiers, and getting the militia ready for action. I am 
allowed nothing for my time and expenses, neither have 
I had another opportunity to thrash the French, which 

* Bancroft, Vol. IV. p. 267. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 307 

I should like to have done. But as I grow old, it is 
time for me to retire from the field. I never have been 
consulted, nor has my advice been asked by Governor 
Shirley nor any of the commanding officers during this 
war ; so I chose to be silent. 

" Last August I was at Boston, when Governor 
Pownall heard that Fort William Henry was besieged 
by the French and Indians. He desired me to proceed 
to Springfield, one hundred miles from Boston, there to 
give out orders to the militia. Tn less than three days 
I arrived there from Boston, where I heard that said fort 
was surrendered to the French. Some say, that had 
General Webb gone with what men could have been 
spared from Fort Edward, which is fourteen miles 
nearer Albany than Fort William Henry, he might have 
raised the siege and driven the enemy. When I was at 
Springfield, an express brought me intelligence that they 
expected the enemy to march down to Fort Edward, to 
lay siege to it, as they had done to Fort William Henry. 
This gave me pleasure, as I had five or six thousand 
soldiers in arms. I immediately procured provisions 
for them, and was determined to march, and to have got 
between them and the lake, and given them battle, 
but to my great mortification, another express arrived 
as we were setting out, and gave account that they had 
demolished Fort William Henry, and shipped off the 
stores, etc., and were retreating. I then found that as 
we had no vessels to follow them, it would answer no 

purpose to proceed The officers of the army 

have not shown me due respect. It is true I am 
unacquainted with the regular service, though I was 
born on the frontiers, and when young had a commis- 
sion in Queen Anne's war. I have greatly impaired 



308 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

my private fortune by ever being employed in the 
public service." 

The cursory reader might infer that this complaint of 
neglect from Shirley and the British generals, proceeded 
from wounded pride alone, but in reality it originated 
more in a desire to exonerate himself from the charge 
of participating in the late unwise counsels that had 
proved disastrous to the British arms in America. He 
felt that the errors of others, to which he had in no way 
contributed, should be borne by them in England, and 
not ascribed to him, who had not been deemed worthy 
of being consulted by the commanders. 

All history condemns the course of Braddock in 
refusing to listen to the counsels of young Washington, 
and Shirley, Loudon, Webb, and subsequently, as 
will appear, Abercrombie, who deemed it beneath their 
dignity to call Pepperrell in council, proved themselves 
incompetent to command, and were ordered home, 
while Pepperrell retained the confidence and esteem of 
both crown and people. 

Abercrombie, on his arrival, found the colonies more 
ready to raise men and supplies than in any former 
year. Pitt had given assurance that they should be 
reimbursed, and that all officers below colonel should 
be ranked as equals with officers of the same grade in 
the British army. This stimulated to extraordinary 
exertions. Massachusetts alone furnished 7,000 men. 
Taxes were enormous. Individual merchants in Boston 
paid to the amount of two thousand dollars, and the 
tax on real estate amounted to two thirds of the in- 
come, and produced numerous bankruptcies. 

The other colonies, beside Massachusetts, made 
strenuous exertions to meet the expectations of Mr. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 309 

Pitt. Connecticut raised 5,000 men ; Rhode Island 
and New Hampshire, 500 each. Large reinforcements 
were sent from England, making in all an army of 
50,000 men, the largest number ever mustered in 
America, and greater than the whole population in 
Canada. Twenty-two thousand of these were British 
regulars. 



310 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



CHAPTER XV. 

The plan of the campaign for 1758 was similar to 
that adopted by Shirley in 1756. It was proposed to 
attack Louisburg, Ticonderoga, and Fort DuQuesne, 
(now Pittsburg). The first onset was upon Louisburg. 

Lord Amherst sailed for Louisburg from Halifax, in 
the fleet commanded by Admiral Boscawen, on the 
28th of May, and arrived in Cabarus Bay June 2d. 
Prevented from landing by a heavy surf until the 8th, 
the brave General Wolfe then led the army in three 
divisions of boats to nearly the same place where 
Pepperrell's army landed. The enemy were arrayed 
along the shore, and after making some resistance, fled 
to the city. The British lost, in killed or drowned, forty- 
three regulars and six provincials, and the French lost 
two lieutenants killed, and seventy prisoners. Two large 
guns, and thirty-two small ones, planted along the shore, 
were taken, with their ammunition. The French de- 
stroyed the grand battery, and called in their outposts. 
General Wolfe, with eighteen hundred men, marched 
around Green Hill and the north-east harbor, to the 
light-house, which the enemy deserted, destroying their 
cannon. A road was now made over the morass 
through which Pepperrell had dragged his cannon ; this 
occupied several days. A French frigate, in attempting 
to escape in the night for Quebec, was captured. The 
smallpox broke out among the 108 provincial carpenters 
under Colonel Meserve, (who had been there with Pep- 
perrell,) and he, his son, and nearly half the others, died. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 311 

On the 29th, the French sunk four ships, of from twenty 
to sixty guns each, in the harbor's mouth, to obstruct the 
entrance. Batteries were erected on Green Hill, back of 
the grand battery, and fascine batteries, as in the former 
siege. The light-house battery silenced the island 
battery. On July 25th, the admiral sent in six hundred 
men in the night, to destroy the two remaining ships of 
the line, who burnt the Prudent, a seventy-four, and 
towed off the Bienfaisant, a sixty-four, to the north-east 
harbor, and when he was about to send in six ships, the 
French proposed terms of capitulation, but were re- 
quired to surrender unconditionally. Total force cap- 
tured, 3,031 soldiers and 260 seamen. There were 
killed, of the English, 21 officers and 146 privates, 
wounded, 30 officers and 301 men. The British lost 
more than a hundred boats in landing. 

To Pepperrell, the restoration of his own conquest of 
1745 was a joyful event. This was the main pillar of 
his fame ; and to see the proud trophy of his toil and 
valor again wrested from a foreign grasp, filled his 
heart with delightful emotions. Although he took no 
part in this expedition, it must interest the reader of 
the account of his expedition in 1745 to have this brief 
sketch of the second surrender, to compare with the 
former conquest by himself. 

Amherst sailed with part of his army from Louisburg 
to Boston, and from thence marched to Fort William 
Henry. During the siege of Louisburg, Abercrombie had 
embarked in boats at Fort William Henry with 16,000 
men, prepared for the enterprise, and passing down 
Lake George, landed on the west side near its outlet, 
and, marching towards Ticonderoga, drove before him 
a battalion of the enemy which was encamped on the 
way, and soon after had a skirmish with some straggling 



312 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

troops, in which fell the lamented Lord Howe. Pressing 
onward, he came near the fort, and arranged his troops 
to storm it. But by the skilful defence of the enemy, 
his soldiers were entangled among fallen trees, and 
after a brave struggle of four hours, were repulsed, with 
the loss of 2,000 killed and wounded, mostly British 
regulars, and but a trifling loss to the enemy. This 
defeat induced Pitt to order Abercrombie home, and to 
give the command to Amherst, who had returned from 
there to Louisburg. Amherst marched back, and com- 
manded the army on Lake Champlain till the war 
closed. 

Colonel John Bradstreet, captain of Pepperrell's regi- 
ment at Louisburg in 1745, and his intimate friend and 
protege, was in the disastrous engagement against 
Ticonderoga, with Abercrombie, and immediately after 
earnestly solicited permission to march against Fort 
Frontinac, near the head of Lake Ontario, with a force 
of 5,000 men, chiefly of provincial militia,* carrying 
eight pieces of cannon and two mortars. 

On arriving at Oswego, he had the sad privilege to 
survey the fortifications ruined the year previous by 
Montcalm, and to lament over the graves of his old 
companions in arms. Colonel Mercer and others, who 
were at Louisburg. The troops embarked here, and in 
the evening of the 25th of August landed within a 

* Regulars, 135 

New York Provincial Militia, . . . . 1,112 
New Jersey " " . . . .412 
Boston " " .... 675 

Rhode Island " « .... 318 
Batteau men, 300 

2,952 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 313 

mile of Fort Frontenac, which, after a spirited assault of 
two days, surrendered at discretion. The Indians having 
previously deserted, left but 110 prisoners of war. But 
the captors found in the fort sixty pieces of cannon, 
sixteen small mortars, a large number of small arms, a 
vast quantity of provisions, military stores, and merchan- 
dise, and nine armed vessels. Having destroyed the fort, 
vessels, and stores, he returned to the main army. For 
this noble achievement, Bradstreet was promoted to 
the rank of brigadier-general in the royal army, to the 
great joy and satisfaction of his old commander and 
patron. Sir William Pepperrell. 

The fall of Frontenac cut off the supplies intended 
for Fort DuQuesne, (now Pittsburgh,) and hastened its 
reduction. General Forbes, who marched against it 
with 8,000 men, accompanied by Washington, arrived 
there late in November, and found the fort evacuated 
the preceding evening. The neighboring Indians en- 
tered into a treaty, and the victorious army returned to 
Virginia. Thus ended hostilities between Lake Erie 
and the Mississippi, and the claim of the French to this 
territory never after revived. 

After the capitulation of Louisburg, July 26, 1758, 
and before the British took possession, a large number 
of French and Indians escaped from there in the night, 
and fled toward New Brunswick. General Monckton,, 
of Nova Scotia, wrote to Governor Pownall that a 
body of Frenchmen, in conjunction with the Indians on, 
the rivers St. John, Penobscot, and probably Passama- 
quoddy, were meditating an attack on Fort St. George's- 
in Kennebec, and the destruction of all the settlements 
in the vicinity. Immediately, Governor Pownall col- 
lected such a military force as could be mustered, and 
hastened with them by water to reinforce that place. 

27 



314 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

On arriving, he threw these auxiliaries, with supplies of 
warlike stores, into the fort at a most fortunate junc- 
ture ; for within thirty-six hours after his departure 
thence, the fort was assailed by a body of 400 French 
and Indians, who could make no impression on it, and 
returned. 

General Waldo of Falmouth wrote to Sir William 
several letters, apprising him of impending danger to 
the eastern settlements, from the above-mentioned In- 
dians, of which Sir William notifies all his officers by 
the following circular : — 

Kittery, August 31, 1758. 

Sir, — Inclosed you have copies of several letters 
sent me by General Waldo, and I expect every hour to 
learn North Yarmouth, Falmouth, and other towns this 
side, are attacked by the enemy ; for if those that came 
out of the city of Louisburg the night before the Eng- 
lish took possession of it, have joined those we heard 
before were coming upon the eastern frontiers, there 
must be a large number. You are therefore hereby 
directed immediately on sight of this, to send out posi- 
tive orders to the several captains of troop and foot, to 
see that their men are well provided with arms and 
ammunition, and to hold themselves ready at a minute's 
warning to march, and if you hear of any place being 
attacked, you are to proceed with them forthwith to 
afford relief and to pursue the enemy, sending me the 
intelligence, and if my life and health will permit, 
1 will soon be'with you. Be sure to see that the men 
are well provided, fail not. 

When the former ministry was changed to make 
room for the energetic Pitt, Sir William doubtless felt 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 315 

the loss of the Duke of Newcastle and of Lord Halifax, 
who had honored him with every token of respect when 
he was in London, and had since corresponded with 
him in a free and friendly manner on provincial con- 
cerns. They had twice sent him the king's commission 
of a colonel in the royal army, and in 1756 that of a 
major-general. On their removal from power he must 
have apprehended that all his past services would, in a 
measure, be overlooked by young Pitt, to whom he was 
almost, if not entirely a stranger. But such was not 
the case. The conquest of Louisburg was indelibly 
inscribed on the page of history, and Pitt learned from 
all quarters that no man in America wielded an influ- 
ence like Pepperrell's. He had recently seen, too, that 
when Massachusetts was threatened with invasion from 
Fort William Henry, and the whole population were in 
the greatest consternation, lest the enemy should over- 
run the settlements with fire and sword, the eyes of all 
turned to the old hero of Louisburg as their leader, that 
they dropped their implements of husbandry in the field, 
seized their firelocks and marched forth in a mass under 
his banner to repel the enemy from the borders of the 
province. 

The moral influence of such a man on the masses 
Pitt knew how to appreciate, and felt the importance of 
enlisting it to the uttermost in the existing crisis, in the 
service of the crown, by such merited tokens of respect 
for his character and past services as it was in the 
power of the king to bestow. Accordingly his Majesty 
honored him with a commission of lieutenant-general 
in the royal army, bearing date February 20, 1759, an 
honor never before conferred on a native of America. 
But Sir William was not permitted to take the field. 
His health had failed, his end was approaching, and he 



316 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

could only cheer his countrymen and urge them onward 
to victory. 

Among others who were compelled to succumb to 
the pressure of heavy taxation in 1758, as before noticed, 
was Sir William's son-in-law, the Honorable Nathaniel 
Sparhawk. In February, commissioners were appointed 
to receive his effects, and divide the proceeds among his 
creditors. This was a painful occurrence to Sir Wil- 
liam. He writes to the chairman, Major John Hill, 
JuneS, 1758: — 

I have been very much out of order ever since you 
saw me, and think that a journey will do me good. 
My son Sparhawk is under great concern lest some- 
thing should prevent your being here next Monday, and 
if you fail of coming, all that is done relating to the 
surrender of his effects would end as if nothing had 
been done, and then he must begin anew. Since you 
have begun I hope you will not fail to finish it.* 

With respect, etc., W. P. 

Colonel Sparhawk's property was advertised for sale 
at auction, September 15. In the same Gazette, Sir 
William publishes notice to all persons to settle with 
him immediately, and in December following, he adver- 
tises several farms for sale. 

Sir William was impressed with the firm conviction 
that his earthly career w^as drawing to a close, and that 
it was his duty to be intent on putting his house in 
order. He employed an eminent lawyer, David Sewall, 



* A bitter controversy arose between Sparhawk and Colman in the 
settlement of their accounts, with sharp recriminations, which were 
published in the Boston Evening Post. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 317 

to write his will, which was duly executed in January, 
1759. 

Early in the spring of 1759 he journeyed to Boston, 
and on his return home, through Danvers, visited his 
sister Mrs. Prescott, formerly the widow of Hon. John 
Frost, and subsequently of Rev. Dr. Colman. Judge 
Prescott writes him from Danvers to Kittery, April 23, 
acknowledging the receipt of a letter dated 16th instant, 
containing discouraging accounts of his health, and 
adds : — 

I pray God direct you into the best remedies, and to 
give a blessing to the means used for your recovery. 

I am told his Excellency Governor Pownall 

thinks of making you a visit next week or the week 
after. Mrs. Prescott joins me in sending our love. 
Your affectionate brother, 

Benjamin Prescott. 

In accordance with this, the New Hampshire Gazette 
of May 4, 1759, contains the following notice : — 

" Last Wednesday came to town his Excellency 
Governor Pownall, Esquire, governor of Massachusetts, 
attended by Captain Moulton's troop of horse, who was 
ordered by his Excellency, our governor, to receive him 
at the province line. He passed through the town at 
ten o'clock, and was escorted to his Excellency Governor 
Wentworth's seat, where he dined and lodged, and went 
next morning in his Excellency's barge to the seat of 
Sir William Pepperrell, Baronet. In Kittery he received 
a handsome salute as he passed by the castle. We 
hear that Sir William Pepperrell lies dangerously ill at 
his seat in Kittery." 

At the close of the campaign of 1758, the right and 

27* 



318 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

left extremes of the contested territory, Pittsburgh and • 
Louisburg, had fallen into the hands of the British ; 
their arms were victorious at Louisburg, and Fort Du- 
Quesne, and Frontenac. 

Three expeditions were determined on for 1759, all to 
concentrate upon Quebec, the capital and palladium of 
Canada. One through the Gulf of St. Lawrence, 
another through Lake Champlain, and the third against 
Fort Niagara, near the falls, and this captured, to pro- 
ceed through Lake Ontario and the river St. Lawrence 
to Montreal. 

General Wolfe, after the capture of Louisburg, 
returned to England, and was despatched, early in the 
spring, with an army and large fleet. He arrived at 
Louisburg and embarked thence, with eight thousand 
troops in a large fleet, and by the end of June landed 
them on the Island of Orleans, within sight of Quebec. 
Amherst was to reduce Ticonderoga and Crown Point, 
and proceed through Lake Champlain, and by the way 
of Richelieu River to the St. Lawrence, and down this 
to join Wolfe. He reached Isle aux Noix, the northern 
extremity of Lake Champlain, where the enemy were 
posted too strong for him, and he retired for winter 
■quarters to Crown Point. Prideaux's army of pro- 
vincials and Indians passed through Lake Ontario, and 
besieged Fort Niagara early in July. Prideaux was 
killed and Johnson succeeded him in command. An 
army of French and Indians hastened from Detroit and 
the lake shores to attack Johnson and raise the siege. 
But he arranged his men to receive them, in a line ex- 
tending from the fort to the cataract, flanked right and 
left by Indians. After a vigorous onset of the enemy, 
they were repulsed, and the fort surrendered to John- 
son. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 319 

Wolfe, after some severe skirmishing about the out- 
posts of Quebec, embarked his troops in boats, sailed 
up the river, and landed in the night, then scaled the 
cliff in the rear of the city, and next day, September 
13th, gave battle to Montcalm. Both commanders 
were killed, and the French were vanquished, which 
proved a death blow to French power in Canada. The 
following year, 1760, Amherst, Johnson, and Murry, the 
successor of Wolfe, concentrated their armies upon 
Montreal where Vaudreuil, the French commander, 
capitulated, and the Canadas soon after were ceded, by 
treaty, to Great Britain. 

The French war reflected little honor on the British 
arms until Pitt was placed at the helm of government. 
Whatever was achieved during four years, from 1754 
to 1758, was the work of provincial troops, and all the 
defeats and disasters were chargeable to incapacity or 
dogged obstinacy of British commanders. When Pitt, 
with discerning eye, saw that American valor was 
equal, and skill superior, to British regulars against allied 
French and Indians, with all their experience in military 
tactics, he elevated them to an equal rank, and gave the 
command of the armies to younger and more enterpris- 
ing generals. Amherst, Wolfe, Johnson, and Bradstreet 
soon turned the tide in favor of the British armies, and 
achieved the conquest of Canada. 

Sir William's military career, we have seen, was so 
interwoven with the French wars of 1745 and 1755, 
until his health failed in 1758. as to render it convenient 
if not necessary, to give a connected sketch of the cam- 
paigns as they occurred, and as the closing year of the 
war was fraught with events of intense interest, it 
seemed proper to continue the sketch until it terminated. 



320 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

although the part he bore, towards its close, was feeble 
and unimportant. 

But it is interesting to know that his life was spared 
until the British and provincial armies had approached 
to the very verge of conquest, — till he had seen one 
fortress after another surrendered, and powerful armies 
marching on triumphantly, conquering and to conquer, 
— that he could contemplate savage warfare as about 
to cease on the confines of New England, and that the 
reports of tomahawking and scalping, of conflagrations 
and captivities and Indian tortures that had rung their 
changes in his ears, from boyhood to his old age, were no 
more to be heard within our borders. As it was with 
the leader of Israel who toiled on through many years 
and trials, and reached at last the summit of Pisgah, 
from which the beauty of the promised land burst upon 
his enraptured vision, only to close his eyes forever, — 
so with Pepperrell, who now beheld the conquest of a 
vast region soon to be added to the realms of his sover- 
eign, and to become the future abode of peace, civiliza- 
tion, and Christianity, and inland seas hereafter to be 
whitened with the canvas of peaceful commerce. 
Well may we imagine him offering up the pious ejacu- 
lation of Simeon, " now lettest thou thy servant depart 
in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation." 

Sir William Pepperrell died on the 6th of July, 1759. 
His funeral obsequies were attended by a vast con- 
course. The drooping flags at half mast on both shores 
of the Pascataqua, the solemn knell from neighboring 
churches, the responsive minute-guns from all the bat- 
teries, and the mournful rumbling of muffled drum^ 
announced that a great man had fallen and was 
descending to the tomb. 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 321 

The funeral discourse, delivered on the following 
Sabbath by Rev. Dr. Stevens, was published by Lady 
Pepperrell, and a copy sent to each member of the 
house and council. Many copies are, by this measure, 
still preserved. 

The writer of his obituary notice, probably his neigh- 
bor and pastor, Dr. Stevens, remarks that " the sickness 
whereof he died was of long continuance, and accom- 
panied with great pain, which gave occasion for the 
exercise of exemplary patience." He met death with 
Christian fortitude, possessing calmness of mind and 
expressing his resignation to the Supreme Ruler of the 
world. His hope respecting a future and better state 
of existence was grounded on the mercy of God through 
the merits of his Saviour Jesus Christ. 

In contemplating the career of Sir William Pepper- 
rell from the uneducated son of a fisherman, rising 
gradually by the force of his genius to princely opu- 
lence, — to the command of the military forces of Maine, 
— to the first seat on the bench of justice, and to the 
presidency of the governor's council, and all this before 
he had arrived at middle age, — enjoying, too, a popu- 
larity so transcendent that in a projected military expe- 
dition of greater magnitude and peril than the colonies 
had ever undertaken, he was selected as their leader, 
under whose standard all classes were willing and eager 
to enlist, from the hoary-headed Governor Wolcott 
down to the humblest axeman of the forest, we natu- 
rally inquire what were the elements of his character 
that were so attractive and gave him such influence and 
success, — and which drew from his sovereign the com- 
missions, twice of colonel, then of major-general and 
lieutenant-general, and the title and dignity of a 
baronet, — honors never before conferred on a native 



322 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

American. The word tact conveys a comprehensive 
idea of the nature of his power, a quick perception 
with sound common sense, derived not from books, but 
from the study of man, of his character and springs of 
action in all the diversified conditions and relations of 
life, by constant intercourse and observation,- — in which 
study he was an early and an apt scholar, and enjoyed 
an ampler field for instruction through life than usually 
falls to the lot of any one. It was this practical knowl- 
edge, stimulated by aspirations for honorable fame and 
distinction, and sanctioned by an enlightened conscience 
and Christian principles, that crowned his career with 
unparalleled success, and distinguished him from men 
of more education and equal purity of intention. It 
fixed upon the best attainable ends, and resolutely pur- 
sued them ; it selected the most efl^icient means, and 
made judicious use of tWem. 

His perceptions were clear, resolution strong, his judg- 
ment sound, and he ever formed his plans with due 
caution. It was a common saying in his day, that 
whatever he willed was sure to come to pass, attribut- 
able, probably, as much to caution in willing as to stern 
inflexibility in acting. 

He was particular in exacting from others the fulfil- 
ment of their engagements, and equally so in fulfilling 
his own. He not only spoke often of the importance 
of punctuality, but more than once remarked that he 
did not remember ever to have promised payment and 
failed either as to time or sum. Such a course of 
policy tended to healthy trade and commerce, whilst it 
insured in his case both prosperity and popular favor. 

He was humane and forbearing and forgiving. At 
Louisburg not one of his soldiers was punished during 
the siege ; — he aimed, and with great success, to con- 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 323 

trol them by moral suasion, and by requiring a good 
example in his officers. His lieutenant-colonel, Ryan, 
who had defamed him and was amenable to heavy 
punishment, he allowed to go free on making an 
acknowledgment of his offence. " As a judge he was 
not insensible of the necessity of punishing crime, yet 
the humanity of his temper ever disposed him to make 
all those allowances which might be alleged in exten- 
uation of the fault." * 

Sir William's education, though very deficient in 
early life, even to his orthography, was always progres- 
sive. Frequent intercourse with his library and exten- 
sive correspondence with persons of education, trained 
him to a good degree of accuracy in orthography, in 
the structure of sentences, and in the loa^ical arransfe- 
ment of his thoughts, insomuch that the rough draughts 
of many of his letters are written, not only grammati- 
cally, but frequently in good taste. As a public speaker 
he is said to have been always ready, and like most 
other men exclusively practical in their education, he 
spoke to the point, regardless of polished sentences and 
rhetorical flourish. 

He was distinguished for popular and engaging man- 
ners and elegant address, had a high relish for the inno- 
cent and refined pleasures of society, was the delight of 
his friends and the life and spirit of every company, and 
however engrossed with public duties and domestic 
cares, he could readily lay them aside in the social circle 
and play the easy, affable companion. Amid the per- 
plexities that beset him on every side during the siege, 
he preserved equanimity, and his cheerfulness inspired 
wdth hope and confidence all around him. That he 

* Dr. Stevens' Funeral Sermon. 



324 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

was devoutly religious is abundantly shown in the fore- 
going pages, his sentiments being strongly tinctured 
with the prevailing theology of his times, as evinced in 
the letter of condolence to Lady Warren and to Gov- 
ernor Wentworth. He was much displeased with pro- 
fane language, and discountenanced it in the officers 
and soldiers under his command. Some in high rank 
both in the army and navy, he often restrained from 
taking the name of God in vain. 

Sir William expended liberally in the purchase of 
books. Guided, in some degree, in his selections by the 
advice of his pastor, a large portion of them were 
religious, with some historical, and but few miscellane- 
ous. The graceful biographer of the Rev. Dr. Buck- 
minster remarks that his father-in-law, the Rev. Dr. 
Stevens of Kittery Point, enjoyed such privileges during 
a winter's day as rarely fell to the lot of clergymen of 
that time, in his free access to the library of Sir William 
Pepperrell, which consisted of the best English editions 
of standard works imported by himself. When his 
library had grown so as to be burdensome, a large num- 
ber of volumes were selected to form, in conjunction 
with contributions from other individuals, what was 
called the Revolving Library, for the benefit of the first 
and second parishes in Kittery, and one in York, each 
parish enjoying its use a certain portion of the year. 

It is to be regretted that he made so few endowments 
for educational, humane, or religious purposes ; but he 
was surrounded by a very destitute population who 
needed daily relief. Nor were public benefactions fre- 
quent and fashionable then as at the present day, and 
his will shows that he had many poor relations 
who had anticipated their legacies and might require 
further aid. He contributed liberally to his parish and 



DURING THE FRENCH WAR OF 1755. 325 

church, and gave a four-acre lot for a church in Saco, 
a liberal sum to New Jersey College at Princeton, and 
a bell to the church in Pepperrell, Massachusetts, which 
town was named for him at the desire of the minister 
who had been a chaplain at Louisburg. The bell, how- 
ever, got mislaid in Boston, and, it is believed, was 
found by the British and removed. It was inscribed 

with the name of Pepperrell and a couplet : — 

« 

" I to the church the living call, 
And to the grave I summon all." 

" Few were blessed," says a contemporary, " with a 
stronger constitution of body, and his mind was equally 
firm. Difficulties and dangers served only as occasions 
to draw forth his resolution, boldness, and intrepidity." 
But the siege of Louisburg subjected him to exposures, 
and laid the foundation of rheumatism, which occasion- 
ally returned, and finally terminated his useful and 
eventful life in the sixty-third year of his age. 

28 



326 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

The eventful life of Sir William Pepperrell closed a 
few years before the outbreak of the revolution. Pat- 
riotism in his day implied loyalty and fidelity to the 
king of England ; — but how changed the meaning of 
that word in New England after the Declaration of In- 
dependence ! Words and deeds before deemed patriotic 
were now traitorous; and so deeply was the idea of 
their moral turpitude impressed on the public mind as 
to have tainted popular opinions concerning the heroic 
deeds of our ancestors, performed in the king's service 
in the French wars. We have no sympathy with the 
joyous acclamations then bestowed on the successful 
victor returning from the field of glory to be crowned 
with laurels. We have felt no desire to perpetuate the 
fame of his achievements, although characterized at the 
time by patriotism as pure and disinterested as any ex- 
hibited during or since the struggle of the revolution. 
The latter war absorbed and neutralized all the heroic 
fame of the illustrious men that preceded, and the 
achievements of Pepperrell, of Johnson, and of Brad- 
street are now almost forgotten. 

The extinction of their fame by the revolution was 
not more remarkable than the wreck of their fortunes. 
The Penns, Fairfaxes, Johnsons, Phillips, Robinson, 
and Pepperrell were stripped of their immense posses- 
sions by confiscation, who, up to that hour, " had been 
but little less than hereditary colonial noblemen, and 
viceroys of boundless domain." Pepperrell, it is said, 



CONCLUDING CHAPTER. 327 

could travel from Pascataqua to Saco River, nearly 
thirty miles, on his own soil ; and his possessions were 
large in Scarboro', Elliot, Berwick, Newington, Ports- 
mouth, Hampton, and Hubbardston. In Saco alone, 
he owned 5,500 acres, including the site of that popu- 
lous town and its factories. 

In his will, rewritten with great care in January, 1758, 
he gives, after the decease of his wife and daughter, 
portions of her real estate to his grandchildren, Na- 
thaniel, Andrew, Samuel, and Mary Sparhawk; but 
the great bulk of it, including his Saco lands, was left, 
unspecified, to a fourth grandson, William, as residuary 
legatee, on condition of his changing his name from 
Sparhawk to Pepperrell. All these grandsons remained 
loyalists or tories, and left the country, and these vast 
domains passed into other hands. A life-interest in the 
Saco lands was enjoyed by Lady Mary, the relict of 
Sir William and her daughter Mrs. Sparhawk, devised 
to them by the Baronet's will. In exchange for the 
right thus arising, the State assigned two ninths, in 
absolute property, to Lady Pepperrell and her daughter 
Elizabeth Sparhawk, by a deed executed in 1788. Mrs. 
Sparhawk appointed Charles Chauncy, Esquire, her 
agent, by whom several lots were sold, and among them 
the mill lot, to Colonel Thomas Cutts, who purchased, 
from time to time, a large portion of the Pepperrell 
lands in Saco.* 

*Hon. Thomas Cutts, the youngest son of Hon. Richard Cutts of 
Kittery, born April 5, 1736, having served a clerkship in Sir Wil- 
liam's counting-room, when about twenty-two years of age removed 
to Saco, where, from a capital of one hundred dollars lent him by his 
father, he amassed the largest fortune in Maine next after Sir Wil- 
liam's, raised a large family, was active during the revolution, was a 
noted merchant, president of a bank, senator in the Massachusetts 



328 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Thus the princely fortune of Pepperrell, that required 
a century to construct, from the foundation laid by 
John Bray the shipwright, to the massive structure 
raised by the fisherman William Pepperrell, and com- 
pleted by his son Sir William, fastened and secured 
though it was, by every instrument that his own skill 
and the best legal counsel could devise to give stability 
and perpetuity, was in a brief hour overthrown and 
demolished, and its fragments broadcast, by the confis- 
cation act of 1778 ; and two of his daughter's grand- 
sons have since been saved from the poor-house by the 
bounty of some individuals, on whom they had no 
claims for favor. " Surely every man walketh in a vain 
show. He heapeth up riches and knoweth not who 
shall gather them." 

His plate was given to his grandson, Sir William, 
and was allowed in the confiscation act to be taken 
away from the dwelling of the deceased at Kittery 
Point. Colonel Moulton of York, with six soldiers, 
guarded its conveyance to Boston, whence it was 
shipped to England. Two or three pieces were pre- 
sented to individuals and are still preserved, one of 
them is owned by Mrs. Freeman of Illinois, and an- 
other by Mrs. Jarvis of Maine. The sword he wore at 
Louisburg is in my possession. Another sword, richly 
mounted with gold and jewels, given him by Sir Peter 
Warren, is in possession of Dr. Jai;vis of Claremont, 

legislature, colonel of a regiment, and one of the founders of the 
Massachusetts General Hospital. He died January 10, 1821. His 
son Richard was many years a member of congress, and a daughter 
married Hon. Thomas G. Thornton, United States Marshal for 
Maine from 1803 to 1824. Their grandson, J. Wingate Thornton, 
Esquire, a highly respected attorney in Boston, has furnished me 
with some valuable materials for this Memoir. 



CONCLUDING CHAPTER. 329 

New Hampshire. It was presented by his grand- 
daughter, Mrs. Dr. Charles Jarvis of Boston, to Dr. 
Leonard Jarvis of Claremont, New Hampshire, whose 
son. Dr. S. G. Jarvis, is now the owner. A gold snuff- 
box, said to have been given him by the Prince of Wales, 
afterwards George the IH., is owned by George A. Ward, 
Esquire, of New York, who prepared for the press the 
Journal of Curwen his ancestor, which is so much 
admired by every reader. 

After the death of Sir William, Lady Pepperrell 
caused a neat house, in modern style, to be erected near 
that of her daughter, and the village church, both of 
which still remain. Here she died, on the 25th of No- 
vember, 1789, after being a widow thirty years. The 
old mansion she left, built by the first Colonel Pepper- 
rell, and enlarged by his son, is plain in its architecture 
and contained a great many rooms before it was cur- 
tailed ten feet from each end ; " it was well adapted to 
the extensive domains and hospitalities of its former 
owners. The lawn in front extends to the sea, and the 
restless waves over which Sir William successively 
sought fortune and fame, still glitter in the sunbeams, 
and dash around the disconsolate abode. The fires of 
hospitality are extinguished, and the present inhabitants 
of the mansion, (families of poor fishermen,) seem to 
wish to exclude all visitors and strangers. The hall is 
spacious and well finished; the ceiling is ornamented, 
and the richly carved banister bears traces of former 
elegance. On ascending the staircase, paintings of 
angels' heads decorate the hall window." A few years 
ago there was a noble avenue of trees of a quarter of a 
mile in length, leading to the house of Colonel Spar- 
hawk, east of the village church. The large hall of 
this mansion was lined with some fifty portraits of the 

28* 



830 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Pepperrell and Sparhawk families, and of the friends 
and companions in arms of Sir William — such as 
Admiral Sir Peter Warren, Commodore Spry, etc. 
" Some of them were rescued from destruction by the 
indefatigable antiquary and elegant historical writer, 
the Rev. Dr. Burroughs of Portsmouth, and now adorn 
the walls of the Athenaeum here." * 



LOUISBURG AND CAPE BRETON. 

The English having achieved the conquest of Canada, 
deemed it the best policy to demolish the fortifications 
of Louisburg, and thus save the expense of maintain- 
ing a garrison there, and also prevent its falling again 
into the possession of France, and endangering the 
safety of Nova Scotia. Accordingly, some able en- 
gineers were despatched from England, who, by means 
• of mines judiciously disposed and well constructed, 
reduced the fortifications to a heap of rubbish, levelled 
the glacis, and filled up the ditches. All the imple- 
ments of war were removed to Halifax. A few private 
houses, with some barracks, were left standing. 

Cape Breton, after the acquisition of Canada, re- 
mained dismantled nearly thirty years, utterly neglected 
by the home government, and but slightly favored by 
the government of Nova Scotia, of which it formed a 
dependency. Louisburg, its capital, ceased to be a 
place of trade, and its dwellings were suffered to crum- 
ible into ruins. The war of the revolution occupied the 
attention of England for seven long years, and during 

* Extracted from the Appendix of Curwen's Journal, by George 
A. Ward, Esquire. 



CONCLUDING CHAPTER. 331 

this time the population of the capital and of the island 
dwindled to a few hundred. In 1784 public attention 
was called to it as a convenient place for loyalists and 
disbanded troops. With this view the island was 
formed into a separate government, with Lieutenant- 
Colonel Desbarres, a distinguished officer of the sixtieth 
regiment, as governor. He was in the British army 
in the revolutionary war, and had rendered important 
services in surveying the coast of Nova Scotia. This 
gentleman, the father of Judge Desbarres of New- 
foundland, left Louisburg to its fate, and selected for a 
capital the present site of Sidney, Old Town, about six 
miles south of the coal-mines and ten from the ocean. 
Its numerous advantages for commerce and the fisheries, 
and its vicinity to inexhaustible beds of excellent coal, 
seemed to mark it for a prosperous settlement, and soon 
brought an accession of " nearly 4,000 souls, chiefly 
from Nantucket, Rhode Island, and Martha's Vineyard, 
— stanch loyalists and a hard-working people, whose 
descendants are at this day distinguished from their 
neighbors by superior intelligence and more civilized 
habits." A regiment was stationed here at first, which 
gave an impulse to trade. Beside American loyalists, 
there are remnants of the early French settlers, a quiet, 
inefficient people, and a large number of Irish. But 
the most numerous class are the Celts from the northern 
coast of Scotland and the adjacent islands, half civilized, 
improvident, and uneducated, and who speak the Gaelic 
language, which is not understood by the other settlers. 
The site of Sidney, Old Town, is one of the most beau- 
tiful in North America, and the inhabitants are, many 
of them, very intelligent and respectable. It is about 
twenty miles from Louisburg in a straight line, and by 
water from sixty to eighty. At the mines, near the 



332 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

mouth of the river, there is a more industrious people, 
and there are some magnificent dwellings. Both settle- 
ments abound in beautiful and accomplished ladies, 
that would grace any circle in America. On the north 
side of the bay, as it opens into the ocean, and near the 
mines, are some beautiful and picturesque residences. 
At Old Town are stationed a small number of British 
troops, and there are wharves and other conveniences 
for commerce. To those who frequent watering-places 
in the summer, a trip to Sidney would prove a novel 
and pleasing excursion. 

In a recent visit to Louisburg with his nephew, Ed- 
win Parsons, Esquire, of Savannah, for the purpose of 
seeing its ruins, the author rode from Sidney, Old 
Town, over a good road to Miray River, about twelve 
miles; the remaining twelve miles of road were very 
rough and fatiguing. He approached the bay over Green 
Hill near to the grand battery, and then followed the 
shore round the cove, and entered the old city ground, 
where the west gate stood, which Pepperrell's batteries 
demolished. Beyond this there is a bend in the shore, 
formed by projecting points of land, between which a 
chain-boom once extended for the protection of ship- 
ping moored within. In this bend are two very humble 
cabins, where strangers can obtain lodgings. An old 
cellar or two, quite filled with rubbish, is nearly all that 
remains to mark the former habitations ; the rest of the 
old ground being levelled and converted into grass land.* 
The form of the batteries is easily traced, and the city 



* It is a curious fact that although the grounds formerly occupied 
by dwellings is now level grass land, the spots occupied by chimneys 
are distinguishable by rich clover nowhere else to be found in Louis- 
burg. 



CONCLUDING CHAPTER. 333 

wall on the west side, once thirty to forty feet high and 
six feet thick, now presents a huge mound covered with 
verdure, but still retaining the form and showing the 
site of the ancient fortification. Looking in a northerly 
direction from the cabin one sees the grand battery, 
nearly a mile distant, and beyond this, and near w^here 
Vaughan fired the storehouses, the rising ground is 
dotted with a dozen or more houses, among which is a 
small Catholic church. On the right and in a north- 
easterly direction, stands the light-house on a high cliff, 
which makes the north side of the entrance into the 
bay, and to the passing mariner denotes the harbor of 
Louisburg. 

Such is the present state of Louisburg, once the 
foundation of French power in America, whose fortifi- 
cations cost six millions of dollars, and which is so cele- 
brated in history for the two sieges it sustained, and for 
the waste of blood and treasure upon its soil. Here, 
where the morning and evening gun reverberated on the 
distant hills, and drums beat the reveille, where the 
hoarse sound of the trumpet and shrill pipe of the boat- 
swain called mariners to their duties, and the church 
bells rang their merry peals, and every street was alive 
with the busy hum of thronging people, — silence, soli- 
tude, and desolation reign, broken only by the rumbling 
of the distant surf, or whispering murmurs of lighter 
waves that wind along its sandy beach. 

Nearly midway between the two extremities of the 
western wall, and just within it, was a parade ground, 
bounded on the other or eastern side by soldiers' bar- 
racks. At the ends of this ground, and opening to it, 
facing each other, were the casemates or places of 
retreat for women and children, rendered bomb-proof by 
an arch of heavy stonework thrown over each. Two 



334 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

floors divided the space into three apartments, one 
above another, six feet in height. The floors are gone, 
but the large cave of each casemate remains entire, and 
affords a winter retreat for sheep and cattle. 

All the public buildings were faced with hewn tufa- 
stone of a cream color and the texture of common 
sandstone, and being highly wrought into arches, archi- 
traves, and pilasters, must have presented a beautiful 
appearance. A few cart-loads only of these materials 
remain, and these are mostly at the grand battery, the 
others having been transported to Halifax and to some 
of the seaports of New England. In examining a pile 
of these at the grand battery, I found deeply chiselled in 
one of them the name of " Gridley, 1745," whom Pep- 
perrell stationed here in command of the battery; it 
was probably done by his own hand. This same 
Gridley, thirty years afterward, planned the battery on 
Bunker's Hill, that was thrown up in the night preced- 
ing the memorable battle. The old burying-ground 
beyond the eastern extremity of the city is rich grass 
land, fertilized it may be, by the decomposing bones of 
five hundred New Englanders, who were buried here 
soon after Pepperrell's siege. On Light-House Point, 
fragments of shells, thrown here during the two sieges, 
are to be found in great numbers, and in the clefts of 
rocks that face the sea, and near high-water-mark, are 
several old cannon that were tumbled down from the 
battery nearly a century ago. The island opposite the 
light-house shows the boundary and defences of the 
old battery, — portions of which still remain. Such is 
the present state of old Louisburg. "That such a city 
existed at so early a period, is a marvel ; that such a 
city yielded to the farmers, mechanics, and fishermen of 
New England, is almost incredible. The lovers of the 



CONCLUDING CHAPTER. 335 

wonderful may read the works which contain accounts 
of its rise and ruin, and be satisfied that truth is some- 
times greater than fiction." * 



DESCENDANTS OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Descendants of Sir William Pepperrell's daughter 
and only child, Mrs. Elizabeth, wife of Colonel Nathan- 
iel Sparhawk : — 

1. Nathaniel^ Junior^ born August, 1744; graduated 
1765; married his cousin Miss Susan Sparhawk, and. 
had five children, — Nathaniel, William P., Eliza, Susan, 
and Catherine. By second wife, Miss Elizabeth Bart- 
lett of Haverhill, whom he married in 1780; he had one 
daughter named Mary Pepperrell, born in Kittery. His 
third wife was Miss Parker of Portsmouth. Some dif- 
ference arising between him and his last wife, he left her 
and went to England, where he remained till 1809, when 
he returned, and died in Kittery, 1814. His two sons- 
never married. Nathaniel the elder, was feeble and. 
inactive. Consul Jarvis, who married his niece, Miss 
Mary Pepperrell Sparhawk, gave him a home and thus 
saved him from the almshouse. He died in Weathers- 
field, 1836. The other son of Nathaniel, Jr., named 
William Pepperrell Sparhawk, graduated in 1789, audi 
went to England. He returned deeply imbued with 
aristocratic feeling, but very indigent and indolent. A 
few families noticed him kindly on account of his noble- 
ancestor, being great-gi'andson of the elder Sir William. 
He died in York, 1817. Eliza, the eldest daughter of 

* George A. Ward, Esquire, in his edition of Curwen's Journal of 
the Loyalists. 



336 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

Nathaniel Sparhawk, Jr., married Andrew Spooner, a 
merchant in Boston. They both soon died, leaving one 
daughter who was adopted by a single sister of Dr. 
Charles Jarvis of Boston, and received from her an 
accomplished education. She married Edward Jarvis 
of Castine, Maine, brother of Captain Joseph Jarvis, 
United States Navy, and has a promising family of 
children. Susan, second daughter of Nathaniel Spar- 
hawk, Jr., went to London to nurse her father in sick- 
ness, and died there of smallpox, 1803, unmarried. 
Catherine, third daughter of Nathaniel Sparhawk, Jr., 
m.arried Daniel Humphreys, Jr., of Portsmouth. He 
died, leaving two daughters and one son. She removed 
to Kittery to her father's former residence, and died 
there quite indigent, in 1806. Her son died 1828, un- 
married. The two daughters are now pleasantly situ- 
ated in Conway, New Hampshire, unmarried. Na- 
thaniel Sparhawk, Jr.'s only daughter by his second 
wife, was adopted by her uncle Bailey Bartlett of 
Haverhill, Massachusetts, high sheriff of Essex county. 
After she was ten years old she passed much of her 
time in Boston with her aunt, Mrs. Dr. Jarvis. At the 
age of twenty-seven she married William Jarvis, Esq., 
consul at Lisbon, and lately a resident in Weathersfield, 
Vermont, where her half-brother, the invalid, Nathaniel 
Sparhawk, 3d, found a home. Mrs. Jarvis died leaving 
two daughters who were married to D. Everett, Esq., 
of New York, and she has recently deceased, leaving 
two children; and Miss Mary Pepperrell Sparhawk 
Jarvis, who married Hampden Cutts, Esquire, of North 
Hartland, Vermont, and has five children. Besides 
these two ladies, there is Mrs. Edward Jarvis of Castine, 
Maine, the daughter of Miss Spooner that was, who 
has also a promising family of children. Then there 



CONCLUDING CHAPTER. 337 

are the two maiden ladies named Humphreys, living in 
Conway ; and all the above are descended from Nathan- 
iel, the first son of Hoh. Nathaniel, who married Sir 
William's daughter. The only other descendant of the 
baronet living in America, is Miss Harriot Hirst Spar- 
hawk, daughter of Samuel, the third son, an elderly 
maiden lady, and the only Sparhawk living, of Pepperrell 
blood, in America. 

n. The second son of Hon. Nathaniel Sparhawk, 
named William Pepperrell Sparhawk, whose mother 
was the only daughter of Sir William, was, on the 
death of his only son Andrew, adopted by his grand- 
father as heir to his estate and title, on the condition 
that at the age of twenty-one years, he, by an act of the 
Legislature, dropped Sparhawk from his name. He was 
educated in the best manner, and graduated at Cam- 
bridge in 1766. He married Elizabeth, daughter of 
Hon. Isaac Royall, of Medford ; was chosen a member 
of the governor's council, and succeeded to his grand- 
father's title of baronet in October, 1744. When the 
council was reorganized under the act of Parliament, 
"he was continued under the mandamus of the king, 
and incurred the odium which was visited upon the 
counsellors, who were thus appointed contrary to the 
charter. The people of his own county (York) passed 
the following resolution at Wells, on the 16th of No- 
vember, 1774 : ' Whereas, the late Sir William Pep- 
perrell, honored and respected in Great Britain and 
America for his eminent services, did honestly acquire a 
large and extensive real estate in this country, and gave 
the highest evidence not only of his being a sincere 
friend of the rights of man in general, but of having a 
paternal love of this county in particular ; and whereas^ 
the said Sir William, by his last will and testament, 

29 



338 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

made his grandson residuary legatee and possessor of 
the greatest part of said estate, who hath, with purpose 
to carry into force acts of the British Parliament made 
with apparent design to enslave the free and loyal 
people of this continent, accepted, and now holds, a seat 
in the pretended board of counsellors in this province, 
as well in direct repeal of the charter thereof, as against 
the solemn compact of kings and the inherent rights of 
the people. It is therefore resolved, that he hath for- 
feited the confidence and friendship of all true friends of 
American liberty, and, with other pretended counsellors 
now holding their seats in like manner, ought to be de- 
tested by all good men : and it is hereby recommended 
to the good people of this county, that as soon as the 
present leases made to any of them by him are expired, 
they immediately withdraw all connection, commerce, 
and dealings from him, — and that they take no further 
lease or conveyance of his farms and mills until he shall 
resign his seat, pretendedly occupied by mandamus. 
And if any persons shall remain or become his tenants 
after the expiration of their present leases, we recom- 
mend to the good people of this county not only to 
withdraw all connection and commercial intercourse 
with them, but to treat them in the manner provided by 
the third resolve of this congress.' 

" The baronet, not long after, thus denounced by his 
neighbors and the friends of his family, retired to Bos- 
ton, and sailed thence in 1775 for England. His lady 
died of small-pox, and was buried at Halifax. In 1778 
he was proscribed and banished; and the year follow- 
ing was included in the Conspiracy Act, and all his vast 
landed estate in Maine was confiscated, excepting a 
small part reserved as a portion of the widow's dower, 
as noticed in page 327. 



CONCLUDING CHAPTER. 339 

" During the Revolution he was treated with great 
respect and deference by his fellow exiles in England. 
His house was open for their reception, and in most 
cases in which the loyalists of New England united in 
representations to the ministry or to the throne, he was 
their chairman. He was allowed X500 sterling per 
annum by the British government, and this stipend, 
with the wreck of his fortune, consisting of personal 
effects," and a small plantation in Surinam, " rendered 
his situation comfortable, and enabled him to educate 
his children in the best manner, and to relieve the dis- 
tresses of the less fortunate. And it is to be remem- 
bered to his praise, and to be recorded in respect for his 
memory, that his pecuniary benefactions were not con- 
fined to his countrymen who were in banishment for 
their adherence to the crown, but were extended to 
Whigs who languished in England in captivity. It is 
to be remembered, too, that his private life was irre- 
proachable, and that he was among the founders of the 
British and Foreign Bible Society. He died in Port- 
man Square, London, in December, 1816, aged seventy. 
Additional facts respecting him may be gathered from 
Curwen's Journal and Sabine's Loyalists." 

He had one son and three daughters. The eon, 
named William, it was hoped would live to bear up the 
adopted name of Pepperrell, and inherit the title of his 
father; but he died at the Isle of Wight in 1809, unmar- 
ried. 

The daughters were Elizabeth Royall, Mary Hirst 
Mcintosh, and Harriot.* 



* Elizabeth Koyall Pepperrell, married Rev. Henry Hutton, 
who died in 1813. Their children were, 1. Elizabeth, married, 1814, 
to William Moreton, who died, leaving two daughters. 2. Charles 



340 LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL. 

III. The third son of Col. Nathaniel Sparhawk, 
named Samuel Hirst, graduated at Harvard College, 
1771, was a refugee to England with his brothers 
Nathaniel, William, and Andrew. He died in Kittery, 
August 29, 1789, aged thirty-eight. He left an only 
daughter, just alluded to, who, at his request, was adop- 
ted by his sister in Boston, Mrs. Dr. Jarvis, with whom 
she lived until the death of that lady in 1815. She now 
resides in Portsmouth, and has lately expended one 
hundred dollars in repairing the old Pepperrell tomb. 

IV. The fourth son of Col. Sparhawk, named An- 
drew, married a Miss Turner, was a loyalist, and went 

Henry. 3. Mary Anne, married, 1832, Rev. William Moreton, and 
lias seven children. 4. Henry, married Sophia Brevort, and has 
eleven children. 5. Anne. 6. Harriot, married, 1829, Rev. David 
Drummond, and has one daughter. 7. Louise, married, 1824, Arch- 
deacon Parry, since bishop of Barbadoes, and has twelve children. 8. 
William Pepperrell, married, 1836, Elizabeth, who died 1846, and a 
second wife, Ellen Porter, of Chester. 9. Thomas Palmer, married 
Mary Drummond, and has five children. 10. Frances, unmarried. 
The above were all living in 1848. 

Mary Hurst McIntosh Pepperrell, the second daughter of 
Sir William married in July, 1799, William Congreve. She died 
without issue, February 4, 1839. 

Harriot, the third daughter of Sir William, married, 1802, 
Charles Thomas, eldest son of Sir Charles Grave Hudson, Baronet, 
of Wanlip Hall, in the county of Leicester, and of Catherine S., his 
wife, who was eldest daughter and heiress of Henry Palmer ; and said 
Thomas inherits his title of baronet. Their children are, 1. Louisa 
Catherine. 2. Mary Anne. 3. Caroline Harriot. 4. George Joseph, 
married, February, 1836, Emily Elizabeth Holford, of Westonbirt, 
county of Glocester, and has two sons. 5. Charles Archdale, mar- 
ried, February 27, 1838, Julia Simpson, of Launde Abbey, In the 
county of Rutland, and has two sons and two daughters. 6. William 
Henry, died September 2, 1823, aged eight years. 

Sir Charles Palmer (formerly Charles Thomas Hudson) died April 
27, 1827, and his widow, Harriot Pepperrell, died January 2, 1848. 



CONCLUDING CHAPTER. 341 

to England with his wife, who died soon after, and he 
died there in 1783, leaving no children. 

V. Miss Mary Pepperrell Sparhawk, married Dr. 
Charles Jarvis, of Boston, and after his death, she passed 
the remainder of her days at Kittery Point, near the 
village church, and nearly opposite the residence of her 
grandmother. Lady Pepperrell's dwelling, built after the 
baronet's death. She died in 1815. 

29* 



APPENDIX. 



A. 



Abstract of Sir William PepperrelVs Will. 

He gives to Lady Pepperrell half of his real estate, four 
negroes, the use of all his furniture during her natural life ; and 
the increase of all his live-stock on all his farms ; his chariot, 
chaise, and her choice of two of his horses; all his wines and 
other liquors, and one thousand pounds sterling. 

To his son-in-law, Nathaniel Sparhawk, all the dividend to 
be allowed for his demand against the late firni of Sparhawk & 
Colraan, and for his wife and children's support, the income of 
the other half of his real estate, and the interest of one thousand 
pounds ; also, all his real estate in the north parish of York 
and in Berwick; she being required to sign all receipts and to 
have sole power to bequeathe her legacy. 

To his grandson, Nathaniel Sparhawk, junior, all the lands 
bought of his father (after Lady Pepperrell's and daughter's 
death) ; also, one thousand pounds sterling. 

To Samuel Hirst Sparhawk, his house and land in Ports- 
mouth ; farm in Newington ; farm near the lower ferry ; a 
house and four acres of land at Kittery Point, with the pasture 
between the battery and the house of Black Richard, and one 
thousand pounds sterling. 

To his grandson, Andrew P. Sparhawk, the house built for 
his son Andrew (deceased) in Kittery, and the land fenced in 



344 APPENDIX. 

around said house ; the garden fenced in next the harbor over 
against said house ; the three fields on the north side of the 
highway next to the pasture given to his son Samuel ; the bat- 
tery field joining on the west side to the pasture before given to 
his brother Samuel ; all the lands bought of Charles Frost at 
Sturgeon Creek ; and if he dies, it goes to his brother William ; 
also, one thousand pounds sterling on arriving at twenty-one ; 
and all the furniture left in his son Andrew's house. 

To his granddaughter, Mary P. Sparhawk, the house and 
forty acres of land bought of the Baxters ; his lands in Boston 
and in Rutland ; and if she dies, it is to be divided among his 
other grandchildren ; also, his diamond ring, and one thousand 
pounds sterling. 

To his sister, Mary Prescott, thirty pounds sterling. 

To his sister, Miriam Tyler, all his right in her house, and 
what is due on mortgage or otherwise. 

To his sister, Dorothy Newmarch, all her husband owes him 
and six pounds sterling. 

To his sister, Jane Tyler, twenty pounds sterling. 

To his kinsmen, John and Andrew Phillips, what they owe 
him and three pounds sterling ; and to John, the use of fifty 
acres of land, for life, in Saco, where he now lives. 

To his kinswoman, Sarah Frost, his deceased brother's oldest 
daughter, all the money she and her deceased husband, Charles 
Frost, owed him, and thirty pounds sterling. 

To the children of his deceased kinswoman, Margery Went- 
worth, all the money that their father, Capt. William Went- 
worth, owed him, and ten pounds sterling to each. 

To his kinswoman, Jane Watkins, all the money that her de- 
ceased husband, Capt. Andrew Watkins, owed him. 

To his kinsman, Capt. William Frost, one half of all he owes 
him, provided he pays the other half, within two years, to his 
brother, Andrew P. Frost, and his sister, Sarah Blunt, equally. 
To the children of Joel Whitemore, all the money that their 
father owed him. 

To his kinsman, William Whittemore, all the money he owed 
him. 



APPENDIX. 345 

To each of the children of his kinswoman, Margery Gerrish, 
five pounds sterling. 

To the Rev. Benjamin Stevens, ten pounds sterling. 

To each of the children of his kinswoman, Eliza Hale, de- 
ceased, five pounds sterling. 

To his kinsman, John Watkins, twenty pounds sterling. 

To his kinsman, Edmund Moody, all he owed him, and ten 
pounds sterling.* 

To his kinswoman, Dorothy Pitman, all the money that her 
husband, Derry Pitman, owed him. 

To his kinswoman, Joanna Frost, all the money that her de- 
ceased husband, Charles Frost, Esquire, of Falmouth, owed 
him, and ten pounds sterling. 

To his kinsman, John Frost, (of Elliot,) all the money he 
owed him. 

To Hannah Billings, five pounds sterling. 

To the poor of the parish in Kittery, two hundred bushels of 
corn, fifty bushels annually, as his executors and minister should 
direct. 

To the poor of the church, ten pounds as above, and ten 
pounds for plate for the church. 

To his grandsons, to be equally divided between them, his 
clothing and armor and gold rings. 

Should his daughter have any more children, he gives them 
one thousand pounds each. 

To his grandson and residuary legatee, William P. Spar- 
hawk, one thousand pounds; and after his wife and daughter's 
decease, on condition that he has his name legally changed 
from William Pepperrell Sparhawk to William Pepperrell, all 
his set of plate received from Sir Peter Warren j and all the 
portraits of his relations and friends in his house ; his sword 



* This Edmund Moody removed from Kittery to Saco, and erected the 
first meeting-house there. He had a son named William Pepperrell 
Moody, who succeeded him at Saco, and a grandson, namely. Colonel 
William Moody, an able politician of that town. 



346 APPENDIX. 

and gold wat<;h, and all his real estate in Saco and Scarborough, 
to hold for his natural life, and then to descend to his son, who 
is to assume the name of William Pepperrell, and to his son's 
son forever, so long as there shall be one of the name in his line 

But in case he should have no son but a daughter, 

then the said estate shall be and remain in his eldest daughter, 
on condition, that if she marry, her husband shall legally as- 
sume the name of William Pepperrell, and after her decease, to 
go to the male issue, and to the heirs of such issue, and heir 
male successively forever. But if she shall have no son, then 
said estate shall be to her oldest daughter, and her male heirs, 
in manner aforesaid, successively forever, provided that he 
legally assumes the name of Pepperrell. 

But if his said grandson William shall not leave any issue 
male or female to inherit the estate and name, then his grand- 
son, Andrew P. Sparhawk, is substituted, with his heirs, in like 
manner and on like conditions ; — and in case of failure in this 
line, then Andrew and his descendants are in like manner sub- 
stituted ; and in case of failure in this line, then Samuel Hirst 
Sparhawk and his heirs and descendants are in like manner 
substituted ; and in case of failure in this line, then the son of 
his daughter (should she have one) and his descendants are in 
like manner substituted ; and in case no grandson succeeds to 
the inheritance as aforesaid, then my granddaughter's husband 
shall, he assuming the name of Pepperrell, be in like manner 
substituted ; and next to her, in case of failure in this line, my 
daughter's second daughter (should she have one) shall be sub- 
stituted. And in case of failure of all his direct descendants of 
issue, Joanna Frost, of Falmouth, and her children are sub- 
stituted; and next to Joanna is substituted Pepperrell Frost, 
son of widow Sarah Frost, of Kittery ; next, the oldest surviv- 
ing son of his kinswoman, Margery Wentworth, deceased. And 
in case all the above fail of issue, then the said estate is to be 
kept in repair, — also the family tomb ; and one third part of 
the residue of the rents and profits of said estate to be applied 
towards supporting a Congregational minister, where the pres- 



APPENDIX. 347 

ent meeting house now stands ; and a free school near to it, to 
be supported by the remaining two thirds, under the care of 
the minister and his executors, within half a mile of his dwell- 
ing-house. 

The remainder of his lands in New Hampshire he gives to 
his grandson, Andrew P. Sparhawk ; and in case of his death, 
to his grandson William. All other estates, real or personal, 
are given to William as residuary legatee ; and in case of his 
death, to Andrew ; and in the event that both die, it is to be 
divided between his other children equally. 

He appoints Mary Pepperrell, his wife, and Benjamin 
Greenleaf, executors, until his grandsons Nathaniel and William 
arrive of age. The will was signed in January, and a codicil 
to it was signed the 4th of July, 1759, two days before his de- 
cease. 



B. 

Officers in Pepperrell's Army at the Reduction of Lomsburg, 1745. 

1. York County, PepperrelFs Regiment. — Colonel Brad- 
street, Lieutenant-Colonel Storer, Major Cutts. Captains: 
Peter Staples, Ephraim Baker, John Fairfield, Bray Bearing, 
.John Kinslagh, John Harmon, Moses Butler, Thomas Perkins, 
William Warner, Moses Pearson. 

2. Connecticut, General Wolcott's Regiment. — Colonel Burr, 
Lieutenant-Colonel Lothrop, Major Goodridge. Captains : 
David Wooster, Stephen Lee, Daniel Chapman, Wilham Whit- 
ing, Robert Dennison, Andrew Ward, James Church, Henry 
King. 

3. Cumherland County, Colonel Waldo's Regiment. — Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Noble, Major Hunt. Captains : Samuel Moody, 
John Watts, Philip Damarisque, Benjamin Goldthwait, Daniel 



348 APPENDIX. 

Hale, Jacob Stevens, James Noble, Richard Jacques, Daniel 
Fogg, Joseph Richardson. 

4. Brigadier Dvvight's Regiment. — Colonel of Artillery, 
Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas, Major Gardner. 

5. York County, Colonel Moulton's Regiment. — Lieutenant- 
Colonel Donnell, Major Ellis. Captains: John Card, John 
Lane, Christopher Marshall, James Grant, Charles King, Peter 
Prescott, Ami R. Cutter, Samuel Rhodes, Bartholomew Trow, 
Estes Hatch. 

6. Worcester, Colonel Willard's Regiment. — Lieutenant- 
Colonel Chandler, Major Pomroy. Captains: Joshua Pierce, 
John Terry, John Alexander, David Melvin, John Warner, 
Jabez Homestead, Joseph Miller, James Goulding, James Ste- 
phens. 

7. Essex, Colonel Hale's Regiment. — Lieutenant-Colonel 
Eveleigh, Major Titcomb. Captains : Benjamin Ives, Daniel 

Eveleigh, Titcomb, John Dodge, Jonathan Bagley, Jere 

Foster, Samuel Davis, Thomas Stanford, Charles Byles. 

8. Bristol, Colonel Richmond's Regiment. — Lieutenant-Col- 
onel Pitts, Major Hodges. Captaijis : Nathaniel Bosworth, 
Thomas Gilbert, Josiah Pratt, Robert Swan, Ebenezer East- 
man, Cornelius Sole, John Lawrence, Nathaniel Williams, Eb- 
enezer Nichols, Weston. 

9. Col. Gorham's Regiment. — Lieutenant-Colonel Gorham, 
Major Thatcher. Captains : Jonathan Carey, Elisha Doane, 
Sylvester Cobb, Israel Bailey, Edward Demmick, Gershom 
Bradford, Samuel Lombard. 

10. Neiv Hampshire, Colonel More's Regiment. — Lieutenant- 
Colonel Meserve, Major Gilman. Captains: Samuel Whitten, 
William Waldron, True Dudley, Tufton Mason, William Sea- 
ward, Daniel Ladd, Henry Sherburne, John Turnel, Samuel 
Hale, Jacob Tilton, Edward Williams. ^^p^iX^ 



APPEXDIX. ■ 349 



c. 



Brief Notices of some Persons engiif/ed in the Expedition to Louishurg 

in 1745. 

Governor Wolcott. — The army engaged in this expedi- 
tion was the largest ever raised in the colonies. The only one 
that approximated to it was raised in 1711, and commanded by 
General Nicholson, which made an unsuccessfid attempt against 
Canada. Very few, if any, of the officers who were with Nich- 
olson went to Louisburg, with the exception of General Wol- 
cott. He was deputy-commissary of the Connecticut troops, 
who, with those raised in New York and New Jersey, marched 
from Albany towards Quebec ; but learning on their way that 
the large fleet under Admiral Walker, having seven thousand 
regulars and provincials on board, designed to cooperate against 
Quebec, was 'driven back from the Saint Lawrence by adverse 
winds and unskilful pilotage to the Sidney river, and had aban- 
doned the enterprise, they retreated to Albany, making it a dis- 
astrous campaign for the colonies. 

In 1745, Wolcott, at the age of sixty-six, headed the troops 
of Connecticut as major-general, next in rank to Pepperrell, 
and returned soon after the conquest to New London, the place 
of embarkation. He was afterward chief justice of the Supreme 
Court of Connecticut, and Governor from 1751 to 1754. He 
died May 13, 1767, in the eighty-ninth year of his age. His 
son signed the Declaration of Lidependence. 

Brigadier-General Samuel Waldo, third land officer, 
was son of Jonathan Waldo, a wealthy merchant of Boston. 
There w,ere several coincidences in his life compared with that 
of Pepperrell. Both were extensive landholders in Maine, both 
resided there ; the two commanded the two regiments of Maine ; 
they were many years associated in the Governor's Council; 
were at Louisburg together ; their children were betrothed ; 
they passed a year together in England; they were born the 
same year, and died within a few days of each other. 

30 



350 APPENDIX. 

In the winter of 1746 and '47, Massachusetts raised fifteen 
hundred men to march in mid-winter against Crown Point, 
under General Waklo ; but they were attacked by smallpox, 
which frustrated the enterprise. Waldo was an accomplished 
ojentleman, active and enterprising, had enjoyed the advantage 
of foreign travel, having crossed the ocean fifteen times, and 
was an elegant military officer, tall and portly. In May, 1759, 
he accompanied Governor Pownall to the Penobscot River, and 
was standing near him, indicating the boundary of his own land, 
when he fell dead upon the spot, aged sixty-three. His son, 
Samuel Waldo, junior, succeeded his father as colonel of a regi- 
ment, and was judge of probate, representative eight years, 
and died 1770, aged forty-nine. Francis, second son, was the 
first collector in Maine, representative 1762 and '63 ; pro- 
scribed and banished 1775. Died in England 1782, unmarried. 

Colonel John Bradstreet, who commanded Pepperrell's 
own regiment in 1755, was, after the reduction of Louisburg, 
appointed Governor of Newfoundland. In the war of 1775 he 
was actively engaged, and repulsed a superior force that lay in 
ambuscade, in his pathway from Oswego to Albany, while at 
the head of a large force of boatmen. In 1758, he commanded 
three thousand men against Fort Frontinac, which he reduced, 
and captured a large supply of provisions, cannon, and ammu- 
nition. In 1765, he advanced with troops towards the Indian 
country, and at Presqu Isle (Erie) compelled the Delawares 
and Shawnees and other Indians to submit to terms of peace. 
He was appointed major-general in the royal service in 1772, 
and died at New York, 1774. Two other very distinguished 
generals in the French war died this year, — Sir William 
Johnson and General John Winslow. 

Captain David Wooster, in the Connecticut regiment in 
1745, was made a colonel in 1755 in the Provincial array, and 
was appointed brigadier by Congress in the Revolutionary 
army. He resigned, and was appointed first major-general in 
the Connecticut troops, and was mortally wounded near Nor- 
walk. 



APPENDIX. 351 

Lieutenant-Colonel Lothrop, of the Connecticut forces, 
was an enterprising and religious man, fond of military life, and 
held many civil offices. 

Colonel Richard Gridley commanded the artillery at 
Louisburg, and thirty years after traced and superintended the 
battery on Bunker's Hill, which was thrown up in the night 
before the memorable battle. He also planned and "^superin- 
tended the building of Fort William Henry in 1775. He was 
appointed commander-in-chief of artillery in the Continental 
army by Congress, but, on account of advanced age, gave way 
for the appointment of General Knox. He held civil offices, 
and was a member of the General Court. 

Colonel Jeremiah Moulton was born in York, Maine, 
1688; was taken prisoner by Indians at York when four years 
old. He marched with Captain Harmon and two hundred men 
to Norridgewock, and destroyed the Indian village, killing 
Father Rawle and twenty-six Indians. He commanded a regi- 
ment at the siege under Pepperrell, and was afterwards sheriff, 
counsellor, judge of the common pleas and of probate. He died 
at York, July 20, 1765, aged seventy-seven. His son and 
grandson were sheriffs of York county. 

Major Pomroy, in Colonel Willard's regiment, was ap- 
jjointed a brigadier in the Continental army, but declined in 
favor of General Thomas. 

Matthew Thornton, signer of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, was surgeon of the New Hampshire regiment com- 
manded by Colonel Moore at Louisburg, in 1745. 

Brigadier John Nixon, of the Revolutionary army, a 
native of Framingham, Mass., was a soldier under Pepperrell 
at Louisburg. 

Colonel Robert Hale, high-sheriff of Essex county, and 
many years a member of the Legislature from Beverly. He 
was appointed hospital surgeon in the subsequent war of 1755, 
but declined the office. An interesting account is given of him 
by Rev. Mr. Stone, of Providence, in his History of Beverly. 

Major Moses Titcomb, of Colonel Hale's regiment, was 



352 APPENDIX. 

appointed colonel in the war of 1755, and was killed September 
8th of that year at Crown Point. 

Lieutenant-Colonel Meserve, under Colonel Moore of 
New Hampshire in 1745, was colonel of a regiment of New 
Hampshire troops sent to Crown Point, under Abercrombie and 
General Winslow. He went with Amherst in the second ex- 
pedition against Loliisburg, with the rank of colonel, but in 
charge of two hundred ship carpenters. Most of them were 
attacked with smallpox, and Colonel Meserve and his son died 
during the siege. 

Of the subsequent career of the officers of the British fleet at 
Louisburg, little is known, excepting of Commodore Warren. 

Sir Peter Warren was born in Ireland, was long employed 
on the coast of America and in the West Indies. He married 
Susan, daughter of Lieutenant-Governor James Delancy, of 
New York, and purchased lands extensively on the Mohawk 
Kiver and further westward. In 1734 he invited from Ireland 
his nephew, William Johnson, to take charge of his estates on 
the Mohawk. Johnson resided among the Indians thirty miles 
from Albany, acquired a large influence over them, led a 
numerous body of them to Crown Point and Niagara, and was 
made lieutenant-general and baronet. He died in 1774; and 
his son John inherited the baronetcy, who became a tory, fled 
to Canada, was commissioned major-general, left his immense 
estates to be confiscated, and incited Canadian Indians to rav- 
age his former neighborhood. He was appointed Governor of 
Upper Canada 1796, and died 1798. Warren, his uncle, we 
have seen, gave seven hundred pounds to educate Indian chil- 
dren on the Mohawk River, was made a baronet in 1747, and 
died in England in 1752. 



END. 



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